Beginning's and Endings
by ShadowBrook17
Summary: My sequel to, Tigress' Secret. Leon and Shadow return from their home, the Kin-Do Valley. But this time, they bring a surpirse along with them. Will they be able to fight the trials that await, just around the bend? Find out, right now! Note: I do not own, Kung Fu Panda. But I sure do wish that I did! Theme song: One More Day, by Diamond Rio.
1. Returning to the Jade Palace

**Alright! Here is the sequel to, Tigress' Secret! I hope you all enjoy it! OH! And if you HAVEN'T read my story, Tigress' Secret. Then I suggest reading it, or you will be **_**TOTALLY LOST**_**! So yeah. Gonna hush now and let you get to reading!**

_Chapter one: Returning to the Jade Palace_

Six months had past since, Leon and Shadow left the Jade Palace. It was just another day, in the Valley of Peace. But this one was different. Because Tigress received a letter from some good friends.

"Everyone! Look what I got" Tigress yelled, as she ran into the Training Hall.

Master Shifu called them to a halt and everyone ran other to the excited Tiger. They hadn't seen her _this _excited in a _long _time!

"Well? What is it?" Po asked.

"Yes! What do you have, Tigress?" Shifu asked, walking over to her.

"It's a letter! From Shadow and Leon!" Tigress said happily.

"Well... what are you waiting for? Read it" Viper said. Tigress nodded her head and tried to regain her composure.

"Alright! 'Dear Friends... how are you? Leon and I are doing just fine! We were able to find _all_ of our friends and they joined us in restoring the valley! We miss you all very much! And can't wait to see you. Speaking of which! We will be returning to the Jade Palace in about three months! We can not wait to see you all! Leon says hello! He would have written to you as well. But he's busy right now. And I am afraid I must go too. I'm starting a school for the younger cubs! We can't wait to see you all. And I'm very sorry that we haven't written to you all, until now. We _just_ got the messengers to stop by here! But we will see you all very soon. And are looking forward to it! Your loving friends... ~Shadow and Leon'!" Tigress said, finishing the letter.

"I'm _so_ glad their coming home!" Viper cried out, happily.

"Yeah! Hey! We should have a party!" Po said excitedly. He began to hop up and down.

"Panda... their not coming back for three more months!" Shifu said. Though if you looked hard. You could see a smile crossing his face.

Po frowned at that remark and started to whimper.

"*sigh* All right. You can have a party!" Shifu said. Po grinned. Then Shifu turned to glare at the Panda and said, "Just keep it down!"

"YES! Party time!" Po said. Then he started to dance around the room

.Tigress smiled to herself. It would be so good to see them again.

*Later that day*

Po and the Furious Five finished up their party and were cleaning up from it. Then they heard Shifu yelling.

"_TIGRESS_!"

"Wow! He sound's _mad_!" Mantis said.

"Yeah! What did ya do, Tigress?" Monkey asked.

Tigress just shrugged her shoulders and replied, "Guess I'll go see what he wants!"

Though Tigress knew what Shifu wanted.

Tigress ran out of the Training Hall and down to the lake. She looked around and saw Master Shifu, sitting beside the lake.

"Master Shifu!" Tigress said, bowing to him in a fist-to-palm style.

"Tigress. It's just you and me now!" Shifu said.

Tigress smiled and asked, "What are we going to do today, father*?"

"I thought, that today we would just sit and mediate." Shifu explained.

Tigress smiled and sat down, cross legged, next to him.

The day slowly drifted away, until it was time for dinner.

"Thank you, father. For the wonderful time!" Tigress said, bowing to her adoubted father.

"No... thank you!" Shifu said, bowing as well. Then they turned and walked to the Jade Palace.

The days slowly turned into weeks. And the weeks slowly turned into months. Until finally, the day came for Leon and Shadow to return to the Jade Palace.

They both packed very little. For they knew if they packed light they could move quicker. Which meant they would see their friends faster.

Leon walked through the village. He waved to his friends as he past them.

'_I hope that, Shadow is up to making the trip! I hate it, that she hasn't been feeling well lately!' _Leon thought, as he walked along.

He saw their hut up ahead and walked in. He smiled when he saw, Shadow. She was laying on her back, fast asleep in bed. She was smiling, just a little. He walked over and sat down on the bed, next to her. He sat there and watched the steady rise and fall of her chest. He chuckled, then he gently ran his paw along her face. Shadow eyes slowly opened. She looked over and smiled at, Leon.

"Hey, sweetie! How are you feeling? Are you still nauseous?" Leon asked, quietly

"Hmm. A little. But that nap sure helped!" Shadow replied.

"You think you're up to making the trip?"  
"I've waited so long to see them, Leon. I'm going to make it!" Shadow said.

Leon smiled. He loved that stubborn streak she had.

"Well, I'm ready when you are, Hon!" Leon said. Shadow smiled and nodded.

Then Leon got up and walked to her side of the bed. She slowly placed her feet on the floor and Leon helped her up. She smiled and kissed his cheek.

"I'll be ready soon. Just give me a minute." Shadow said.

Leon nodded his head his head and walked out.

Shadow walked over to the dresser and looked in the mirror. She could see faint scars along the side of her face. She remembered how she got those. Then she began to tremble.

'_Oh, come on!' _she thought _'I don't need this now!'_

But after she thought that, her trembling stopped. She sighed in relief. She also remembered how she got _that _too! Then after another moment, she walked outside. With her bag slung over her shoulder.

"Good bye!" They both called, as they left the valley.

"I'm going to miss that place..." Leon said sadly. Shadow smiled at him.

"Well... we could always visit!" Shadow suggested.

Leon smiled. "You're always thinking!" he said, as he wrapped his arm around her waist and gave her a hug.

They walked on for what seemed to be forever. When they finally made to the Valley of Peace.

"We made it!" Shadow said happily, as they walked into town.

"Eh! That was nothing!" Leon teased her.

Shadow glared at him, playfully. Then they continued into town.

They were about half way to the Jade Palace, when Shadow suddenly stopped. One paw flew to her stomach.

"Shadow? What's wrong?" Leon asked. He was becoming very worried.

"I think that we need to get to the Jade Palace. Right _now_!" Shadow said. She began to pant heavily.

"Why?" Leon asked.

Shadow looked up at him, smiling and replied, "It's time..."

Leon looked at her for a moment. Then a broad smile crossed his face. He nodded his head, and wrapped his arms around her and helped her to the Jade Palace.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs. Shadow was very tired and out of breath.

"I can't... make it up those!" Shadow said, through her pants.

"Just hang on!" Leon said. Shadow nodded.

Then Leon bent down and Shadow leaned on him. He hooked one arm under the back of her knees and the other around her back. Then he lifted her off her feet and into his arms. She leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. She was hurting badly. He made sure he had a tight grip on her, then he ran up the steps, that lead to the palace.

They finally made it to the top and into the Palace. Leon looked around, hoping to see someone who could help. And that's when he saw Shifu walking past.

"Master Shifu!" Leon yelled.

"Leon! Shadow! We didn't think- What's going on?" Shifu asked, when he saw Leon holding Shadow, tightly in his arms. The Master could see she was hurting.

"_AH_! Can we _please_ save the family reunion for later?" Shadow asked. She gritted her teeth together, as another wave of pain washed over. She slowly and subconsciously rubbed a paw across her stomach, which was bulging out.

"What's wrong?" Shifu asked, walking over to them.

"Shifu! We need you to go and fetch a doctor! _Quickly!_" Leon said, as he headed for the bedrooms.

Shifu stared at him. Not understanding. "Why?"

Leon turned to him, smiled and replied happily, "Shadow's going to have a baby!"

Shifu stood there for a moment, staring at them. Then took off running, as fast as he could...

**So ends the first chapter of my sequel! And, it would seem that our happy Tiger couple, are about to became parents! Goodness, this will be interesting! Well, please **_**REVIEW**_**! I want to know what you thought! And yeah. Be sure to check back soon for another chapter!**

_Author note:  
__*After Shadow and Leon left. Shifu told Tigress that they should spend more time together. So almost everyday. The two would meet down by the lake and spend some time with each other. Just father and daughter._


	2. The Time Has Come!

**Alright! I know what you're thinking, 'you just posted the story today! Another chapter already?' Eh, what can I say. I'm **_**OVERLY **_**bored! So yeah. Just do as always. Read, **_**REVIEW**_** and enjoy!**

_Chapter two. The Time Has Come!_

Leon quickly walked to the barracks. He found a large room, at the end of the hall, that was vacant and he walked in. He walked over to the bed and gently laid Shadow down on it.

"Unh... Thanks Le!" Shadow said. Leon could hear pain in her voice.

"Are you ok?" Leon asked. He was worried, just like a soon-to-be dad, should be.

"Yeah... I'll be just fine. Don't you worry one bit!" Shadow reassured him.

Just then, the door opened. Leon turned around and saw Shifu and the doctor walk in. The doctor was a Red Fox, named Shawna.

"Here she is, Shawna!" Shifu said, pointing to Shadow. Shawna nodded her head and walked over to the White tigress.

She smiled at her, then turned to Leon and Master Shifu. "Go on. _Out_! Out with both of you!" she said, pushing Shifu and Leon out the door. Leon wasn't so sure, though.

"Your wife will be _just_ fine! But I will need some help. Shifu, I need you to find Master Tigress and send her over!" Shawna said. Shifu nodded and she shut the door.

Then Shifu ran off, to find Tigress.

Shawna walked over to, Shadow. Shadow had her eyes closed tight. She was breathing heavily and was sweating and trembling badly.

"Just hang in there, sweetie! We're going to make sure that you're a proud mama, before the day is over!" Shawna said. Shadow opened her eyes and smiled.

Then Shawna pulled over a chair and placed her bag down. She pulled out a small jar.

"What's that for?" Shadow asked.

"It will help with the pain!" Shawna said. Shadow nodded.

Shawna poured some of the liquid into a cup, then walked over to, Shadow. She helped her sit up and Shadow carefully drank the medicine. When she was finished, Shawn gently laid her back down.

Shawn pulled some things out of her bag and laid them out. Shadow watched her curiously. Then Shawna walked over to her.

"If you will pull your vest up, I'd like to feel around and make sure everything is going as it should be!" Shawna said.

Shadow nodded. Then she reached down and pulled her vest up over her belly. Shadow smiled when she saw her overly large stomach. She knew how close she was to being a mama. Shawna gently ran her paws, over Shadow's bulging stomach. She would occasionally push inward. Shawna smiled at the Tiger.

"Seems that you're right on time!" she said. Shadow smiled.

Then she winced in pain. Shawna smiled and placed her paw on one spot. She waited for a moment, then reached for Shadow's paw. She laid the Tiger's paw down on the spot. Shadow waited for a moment, then she smiled, when she felt a small kick, from her unborn child.

"I think it's about time, that we bring this little one into the world!" Shawn said with a smile.

*Training Hall*

Master Shifu dashed up the steps and threw open the doors. He ran down the steps that led into the Training Room.

"Tigress!" Shifu yelled, as he ran in.

Tigress, Po and the rest of the Five stopped what they were doing and ran over.

"Master Shifu! What's wrong?" Tigress asked.

"Nothing's wrong! But I need you to come with me. In fact... All of you can come. I'm sure that Leon will be glad to have you around!" Shifu said, as he turned and headed for the door.

They looked at each other in shock. Did he just say 'Leon'?

"Leon and Shadow are here?" Tigress asked happily, as she and the other's ran to catch up with the small Master.

"Yes!" Shifu replied. He continued to walk. But then began to pick up the pace.

"Then why didn't you come and tell us?" Po asked. They were _all _wondering that.

"Because... Leon told me to go and fetch a doctor for, Shadow!" Shifu said.

"A doctor? Why? What happened?" Tigress asked. She suddenly became worried about her friend.

"Shadow is going to have a baby! She's gone into labor and Shawna need's your help, Tigress! And I'm sure that Shadow will be happy to have you by her side!" Shifu explained.

"A _baby_?" they all cried out, in a mix of shock and happiness.

Shifu nodded, then they hurried off.

*Student Barracks*

"Leon! Oh congratulations, little brother!" Tigress cried, as she ran to hug her brother.

Leon embraced his sister. He had the widest smile on his face.

Then Shawna walked out. "There you are. It's about time, Shifu! Master Tigress. I think your friend, need's you!"

Tigress nodded and walked in with her. Tigress could see that Shadow was hurting badly. But she still smiled when she saw Tigress.

"Hey... long time... no see!" Shadow said. She was still panting heavily. But the pain wasn't as bad, now.

"Oh... I've missed you so much! Why didn't you tell us you were going to have a baby?" Tigress asked, after she hugged her friend tight.

"I… I didn't want to get your hopes up, if something had happened to the baby. I was afraid I might lose it, because of my sickness..." Shadow explained. Tigress could see how upset that had made her.

"It's ok. I understand!" Tigress said. She placed a paw on her friend's shoulder. Shadow smiled at her.

"Master Tigress... I need you to stand up there, by Shadow. Try to keep her calm!" Shawna said, getting her things ready to bring Shadow's baby into the world.

"Alright..." Tigress said, getting where she should be.

Shadow closed her eyes. She knew it was almost time.

*A few hours later*

Everyone waited outside, in the hallway. They watched as Leon paced up and down. They could hear Shadow moan and cry out in pain.

"Leon... you need to _stop_ pacing!" Shifu said to the worried, father-to-be. Leon just ignored him.

"Yeah! At this rate, you'll make a hole in the floor!" Po joked. But Leon still wasn't listening. He was to worried about, Shadow and the baby.

Then they heard Tigress talking to Shadow.

"Come on, Shadow! You can do it! PUSH!"  
"AHH!" Shadow cried.

Leon stared at the door in worry. He couldn't bring his eyes from it. Then they heard a soft cry come from inside the room. And then, Shawna walked out.

"Congratulations, Leon. It's a boy!" Shawna said with a smile.

They all started talking at once. Everyone saying the same thing. 'Congratulations'. Then Tigress burst though the door. Worry written on her face

"Shawna! Something's wrong! Come quick!" Tigress cried. Shawna spun around and then they both ran back inside.

They all looked at each other in worry. They could hear Shadow. She was screaming loudly. Leon, more then anyone, could hear the pain in her voice. He felt fear, building up inside him. Shadow continued to cry and scream. They weren't sure _what _was happening!

Then there was silence.

A few moments later, Shawna walked back out. Leon walked up to her and asked the question they all had be wondering.

"Are they alright? Are Shadow and the baby alright?"

Shawna looked at him and shook her head. Leon felt sick. He felt like he was going to drop dead, right there, at the thought that something had happened to, Shadow.

Then Shawna smiled and said, "Not baby... BABIES! Your wife had twins! And boy and a girl. And they're _all _fine!"

Leon looked to his friends. A broad smile was on his face.

"Go on in. I'm sure Shadow will be happy to see you!" Shifu said.

Leon nodded and walked inside. He looked to the bed and saw Shadow. She was sitting up, holding two little bundles. Tigress was standing next to the proud mother. She saw Leon and smiled.

"I'll leave you two alone." Tigress whispered to Shadow. Shadow nodded, not taking her eyes off the little ones in her arms. Then Tigress walked off. She smiled at Leon as she past him.

Then Shadow looked up at her husband and father of her children, "Come and say hello to your kids, Leon! Don't worry. They won't bite. At least not yet!" Shadow said.

She looked down and smiled at the little ones. They were both fast asleep in her arms. Leon quietly made his way over to them. Shadow carefully moved over and let Leon sit down beside her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and looked down at the two sleeping cubs.

"Their wonderful!" Leon whispered, as he smiled down at them.

Shadow turned to him and smiled. He bent down and rubber her head against his.

"So. A boy and a girl. What should we name them?" he asked.

Shadow smiled at the two sleeping cubs and whispered, "Silver and Blaze..."

The boy; Silver. Was a White Tiger. Just like his mom. He had bright Blue eyes, just like her.  
The girl; Blaze. Was a Orange Tiger. Just like her dad. She had Golden Orange eyes, just like him.

"Silver and Blaze... those are perfect name's! Just like them. And just like you!" Leon said. He leaned over and kissed Shadow on the cheek. She smiled at him.

They both laughed as the two cubs opened their small mouths, curled their tongues and yawned big. Shadow understood how they felt.

Pretty soon, the other's were poking their heads in. Leon and Shadow smiled at them. Then at the children.

"Come on in and say hello!" Shadow said. The other's quietly walked in.

"Aw! They're _so _cute!" Viper cooed. She smiled at the two sleeping cubs.

"What did you name them?" Crane asked.

"Silver and Blaze!" Leon replied. Shadow nodded.

Then Shawna walked in. One look at Shadow, told her what she needed to know.

"Alright! Everyone out! Those cubs aren't the only ones who are tired!" she said.

After she said that. Shadow yawned big. Leon chuckled quietly. Po frowned.

"Don't worry, Po! You'll have _lot's _of time, to spend with them!" Leon said.

"That's right. But right now. _Out_!" Shawna said. The others quietly filed out of the room. Each saying good bye and congratulations to the happy family.

Shawna walked over to the Tiger family.

"Leon. I want you to make sure that she gets some rest. She's been through a lot!" Shawna said.

Leon smiled and nodded. He knew that wouldn't be to hard. He looked over at, Shadow. He could see her eye lids drooping. He smiled and gently took Silver from her. He handed him to Shawna. The two cubs, still needed to be checked over. Shawna laid the sleeping cup, down on the cot, that Shifu had found for her. She knew that she would need it for this.

Leon began to take Blaze. But she woke up and started to cry softly. Shadow woke up quickly, at the sound of her young daughters cry.

"Here. Let me!" she said quietly.

Leon handed the little one, back to Shadow. Shadow purred and rubbed her little daughters head with her own. And soon, Blaze was fast asleep again. Shadow handed Blaze to Leon, who handed her to Shawna. Shawna gently took her and laid her next to her brother.

Then Leon helped Shadow lay back down. He held her gently in his arms. He rocked her back and forth. And soon, she was fast asleep, as well. He laid her down in the bed and got up to help Shawna with his newborn cubs.

"She's strong. She just needs some rest, that's all!" Shawna said. Leon nodded.

"She's always been strong. She'll make a wonderful mother!" Leon said.

Shawna nodded and said, "And you, a wonderful father!"

Leon smiled. Then he picked up his sleeping daughter and rocked her, as Shawna checked over, Silver. When she finished, she took Blaze from Leon and he picked up Silver. He smiled at him. He looked _just _like Shadow.

"Alright. I think that should do it. I'll be back in a few hours, to check on them again." Shawna said. Leon nodded. Then she walked out. Leon laid Silver down, next to his sister. He smiled, at the sleeping cubs.

Then he walked over to Shadow. He sat down on the bed and watched her sleep. She had gone through so much and had given him, more then he could have ever asked for. He felt his life couldn't get any better.

He smiled. He had the perfect family. And the perfect life. All wrapped into one...

**Ok, can I get a big, 'Awww!'. Thank you! I know that might have been a little to mushy for some of you. But it's part of the story! So yeah, please**_** REVIEW!**_** Remember people. I LIVE off of those! So yeah. Hope you all liked it and be sure to check back for the next chapter, REALLY soon!**


	3. Peaceful Times

**Ok, new chapter! And when I say new. I MEAN IT! **_**NO ONE **_**has seen this chapter! Not even you all from, Nick! This is a special bonus chapter, that I have written JUST for this site! So yeah. ENJOY!**

_Chapter three: Peaceful Times_

Leon sat on the bed, next to, Shadow. He watched as she slept peacefully. Nothing could wake her up, at this point! Not even a hurricane, tornado and earthquake, all mixed into one! She was out cold.

He knew that she would be tired. But he never thought she would be _this _out of it!

Leon looked up, when the door opened. He smiled, when Shawna walked in. She smiled at him.

"How's she doing?" she asked quietly, motioning to the sleeping Tiger.

Leon smiled and replied, "Sleeping peacefully!"  
"Good. She needs her rest! Giving birth, to _twins, _no less! It will wipe out, even the strongest." Shawna said. Leon nodded and looked down at, Shadow.

Shawna walked over to them. She ran her paw along Shadow's forehead. She smiled.

"She doesn't have a fever anymore. That's a good sign, that she's on the mend!" Shawna said.

"That's good. I was a little worried about that!" Leon confessed.

Then Shawna walked over to the two sleeping cubs. "Will you help me with the cubs, Leon?" Shawna asked. Leon nodded and rose to his feet.

He walked over and gently picked up his sleeping son. Silver smiled and snuggled deeper into his fathers arms. Leon chuckled quietly. He held him, while Shawna looked in his ears, eyes and mouth .

"A perfectly healthy cub!" she said. Leon smiled at the newborn in his arms.

He laid Silver, back down on the bed. Then he picked up his little daughter. She looked just like he did. He smiled as she opened her little mouth and yawned big. He let her wrap her small paws around his finger. She cooed happily and smiled. Shawna did the same to her, as she did to Silver. When she finished. Leon laid Blaze back down, next to her brother.

"They're both perfectly healthy! They take after you and Shadow, very much!" Shawna said, smiling at the proud father.

"Yeah." Leon said quietly. He stared at the two sleeping cubs, happily.

"I'll come back later, to check on Shadow. Right now, she needs her rest!" Shawna said. Leon looked to her and nodded. He knew how tired Shadow was.

Then Shawna walked out and left them be. Leon walked over and pulled up a chair, next to his children. He sat down and watched them. He knew that they wouldn't be this small for long. They would grow!

Then Blaze began to quietly whimper. Soon, she was emitting quiet cries. Leon slowly rose to his feet and picked her up. He held her, gently in his arms. She reached up and grabbed his vest. She held it tightly, in her tiny paws. Soon, she had quieted down again. Leon sat down in the chair, and rocked her back and forth. He rubbed his head against hers. She was so small!

Then he stood up and laid Blaze back down again, next to her brother. He smiled, when Silver rolled over and wrapped his arms around his sister, protectively. Blaze smiled at her brothers touch. Leon knew that they would do anything for each other. He could see that they had a strong bond!

"Are they alright?"

Leon looked up to see, Shadow starting to sit up in bed. She watched him, with tired eyes. He could see how weak and tired she was. He walked over to her. He sat down next to her and let her lean back on him. She leaned her head on his shoulder and sighed.

"How are they?" she asked, weakly.

Leon smiled and replied, "They're fine. Both are sleeping soundly! What about you? How are _you _feeling?"  
"Tired. Weak. Dizzy. Kinda nauseous! Pretty much _everything _that I felt, while I was pregnant with them!" Shadow replied. Leon smiled at her.

He gently rocked her back and forth. He could hear her purring, quietly.

"Did I ever tell you, how _wonderful _you are?" Leon asked. Shadow closed her eyes.

"Well. _Maybe, _but I'm not sure!" Shadow said. A sly smile, crossed her lips.

Leon cupped her chin in his paw and lifted her face to his.

"You. Are the most wonderful girl, in all the world. Every time I see you. My heart just melts. I love you, with all my heart!" Leon said. Shadow smiled at him.

Then Leon bent down and brought his lips to hers. They both stayed there for a moment, before pulling apart. Leon smiled at her and stared into her bright blue eyes. She smiled at him.

"I love you, Leon!" Shadow whispered.

"I love you too, Shadow!" Leon replied.

He purred and stroked her face, caringly. Then the door opened, to reveal, Shawna.

"Well, look who's up!" Shawna said, smiling at Shadow.

She walked over to Shadow and Leon.

"How are you feeling?" Shawna asked.

"Still really tired and just about everything else you can think of!" Shadow replied. Shawna nodded.

"Alright. If you will lift your vest up. I'll take a quick look and feel. Just to make sure that your cubs aren't the only ones who are perfectly healthy!" Shawna said. Shadow nodded.

Then Leon helped her lie back down. Shadow raised her vest up over her stomach. It wasn't as large, but it was still bulging out. Shawna gently pushed on it. She felt around. She nodded and smiled.

"You're doing just as well, as your little cubs are!" she said. Shadow smiled.

"Now. I want you to get some rest. That means _no _training for the next few days! You can walk around as soon as you feel like it. But no training!" Shawna said. Shadow nodded.

"Well. It's almost bed time. Maybe you should sleep the rest of the night, then we'll see how you feel!" Leon suggested. Shadow sighed.

"Alright." she said. Leon smiled at her.

"That's a good idea. I'll want to check on you and the cubs, for the next few days! But for now. I'll let you two be!' Shawna said. She smiled at them, then left the room.

Leon sat next to Shadow and stroked the top of her head. She closed her eyes, smiled and purred quietly. Leon smiled at her and watched as her breathing slowly slightly, as she fell back to sleep.

He just sat there and watched her steady breathing. He bent down and kissed her forehead. He knew these first few days, would be hard on her. Since she was still very weak. But he knew she could do it. She was strong. She always had been strong. And always would be.

He rose to his feet and walked, quietly, over to his two sleeping cubs. He gently picked them both up and walked back to the bed. He sat down, holding the two sleeping cubs in his arms. He watched his cubs and his wife, as they all slept. He wanted to remember them like this. Because he knew, that the time would fly, right before his eyes. And they would be all grown up!

But what he didn't know. Was that their life's would not be the peaceful life's, that he wanted so badly for them. Their lives and futures would be filled with pain. As would his and Shadow's...

**Ok, there's the bonus chapter! Hope you all liked it! I thought really hard about this one and I had a lot of fun writing it! So yeah. Please, **_**REVIEW! **_**And be sure to check back for the next chapter soon!**


	4. All about the kids

**Ok, FINALLY! Here's the next chapter! I'm beginning to wonder WHAT gave me the idea to work on THREE stories at one time. And I'm thinking about posting ANOTHER soon, just not sure if I want to work on four at once. All though I AM on Nick. So... Never mind. I'm just gonna shut up and let you all read chapter four!**

_Chapter four: All about the kid's!_

The year's seemed to fly by, as Silver and Blaze grew up. They really were like their parents.

*Three years later*

The two young cubs, ran around their room. Shadow and Leon sat on the floor watching them play.

"Come on, sis! Catch me" Silver called to his sister.

Blaze ran after him as fast as she could. Shadow and Leon smiled at their twin cubs. Then something happened that neither of them would have expected.

Silver suddenly jumped in the air and floated there, before dropping back to the ground. Then Blaze ran at him and tried to pounce on him. Leon and Shadow's eyes widened when they saw fire on her paws. She was about to land on her brother, when he put up his paws and soaked her in water. She growled, and jumped on him. They rolled around on the floor, laughing and giggling in delight.

Shadow looked at Leon in shock. He returned her surprised look. Then they both rose to their feet and each grabbed a cub. Shadow scooped up Silver and Leon scooped up Blaze. The two cubs fought against their parents tight grip, still trying to get to each other.

Leon and Shadow stared at each other in shock. They had inherited their powers!

Silver had both of Shadow and Leon's powers. Water and Wind.  
While, Blaze had her aunt's powers. Fire. And she was just like her father and aunt as well. Hard core. But sweet when you got to know her.

Silver, who looked and acted like Shadow, wore a dark blue tank top and a pair of black silk pant's.  
Blaze, who looked and acted like Leon, wore a long sleeved shirt, that came down to about her knees. With an opening in the back for her tail. It was dark purple and had hot pink trim on the end, at the bottom, and it had white cuffs. She wore white pants with cuffs on the end*.

Silver and Blaze almost never argued. _Almost_ being the key word in that sentence!

You see, Blaze was one hundred percent sure that aunt Tigress was in love with Po.

Silver on the other hand, wasn't so sure. He was sure she was in love with someone, but he wasn't so sure it was Po.

That was one of the only things they would argue about. One of their favorite thing to do together. Is playing trick's. At that moment, they were trying to scare Shifu.

They would use their mother's go to move, Shadow Escape, to sneak up on him. Then they would jump out and try to scare him. But he was always ready for them.

"Aw, come on, uncle Shifu!" Blaze complained.

"Yeah! What's it gonna take to scare you?" Silver asked.

"You really think I'm going to tell you? You're going to have to figure that out yourselves!" Shifu said with a smile. Then he walked away.

"I think we should give up on this one, Silver! Let's go to my idea!" Blaze said happily.

Silver rolled his eyes. "No! We never turn back. Just like mama! We don't give up. Besides... I don't want to trick, aunt Tigress into spilling her secret love. I'd rather test my skills on scaring uncle Shifu!" Silver said.

"Unh... Fine!" Blaze growled.

The year's still seemed to fly by. Until it was the night before their tenth birthday.

Everyone was fast asleep in their beds. Silver and Blaze were in their room across from Shadow and Leon, right next to Po. Everybody was sleeping well. Everyone, except for Shadow. She was dreaming. And it wasn't pleasant!

_She saw herself, running on all fours. Running as fast as she could. Running from the one person who could strike fear into anyone. Even Tigress. The evil, Master Tanis..._

_"MAMA!" Silver and Blaze, both cried out in fear._

_"SHADOW! HELP!" Leon yelled._

_Shadow slid to a stop and turned to see them. They were all in cage's. She ran to them, as fast as she could. But when she got to them, they all disappeared._

_"_NOOO_!" Shadow cried, falling to her knee's. Tears streamed down her face. She had lost them._

_"HAHAHAHA!" Tanis laughed evilly._

_Shadow turned to look up at him. He smiled down, evilly at her. His eyes glowed bright in rage._

_Then he lunged at Shadow. She tried to fight him, but it was not use._

_"It's all over, Shadow!" Tanis said with a smile._

"_NOO!_ AHHHH!" Shadow screamed, as she sat straight up in her bed.

She was sweating and panting hard. She looked around and saw she was in the Jade Palace. Home.

She dropped her head into her paws and trembled. It had seemed so real! She could feel tears, pricking at her eyes. She closed her eyes and continued to tremble. Then Leon woke up. He sat up next to her and looked at her, worried.

"Shadow? What's wrong, Hon?" he asked.

He looked at her. He saw her trembling. He saw how scared she was. And knew what had happened.

"You had another one, didn't you?" Leon asked.

She nodded and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"I haven't had _that _one, in a long time!" Shadow said, trying to hold back the tear's.

"It's alright, Shadow! He's gone! He's locked away in, Chor Ghom Prison. He's not coming back!" Leon reassured her. She looked up at him, in fear.

"But what if he _does_? He'll come after you and the kids! I just know it!" Shadow said, as tear's began to slip down her face. Leon quickly wiped them away.

"Hey... don't cry. This is a time to be happy. Our kids are turning ten tomorrow!" Leon said, trying to cheer her up. She smiled at the thought.

"Come on... we need to get to sleep. You _know_ how, Silver and Blaze are. _Always_ up early!" Leon said.

Shadow nodded. And they both laid back down, Shadow resting in Leon's arms. And they both fell asleep.

*The next morning*

"MAMA! DADDY! WAKE UP!" Silver and Blaze both yelled, as they burst through the door and into their room.

They both jumped up on the bed and hopped up and down. Shadow and Leon both groaned.

"Morning already?" Shadow asked, with a sly smile.

"You know, Hon. I _think _that today is really special... but I just can't think of what it is!" Leon said with a wink and a grin.

Silver and Blaze jumped on top of them and cried out happily, "It's our _birthday_!"

"Oh yeah! That's it!" Leon said. Shadow smiled at him.

"Come on! Get up!" Silver said, pulling on Shadow's arms.

"Yeah! Get up!" Blaze said, doing the same to Leon, as Silver was doing to Shadow.

When they finally got up. The kids ran off to find the others.

"They grow up so fast..." Shadow said thoughtfully.

"Yeah... come on! We better go catch up with them!" Leon said.

Shadow smiled and nodded. Then Leon and Shadow ran after their kids. They found them bugging, Po. Or was it the other way round? They could never tell.

"So. How's it feel being ten?" Po asked, when he had stopped tickling them.

"It's great!" Blaze replied.

"Yeah! I love being ten!" Silver said, with a smile.

"If you like being ten. Just wait until your party!" Shadow said, when she and Leon caught up with them.

"A _party_?" Silver and Blaze cried happily. Then they jumped up and down in excitement.

"Yeah! And now, uncle Po is going to take you two into town, while daddy and I get the party ready!" Shadow laughed.

They looked at each other and smiled.

"Let's go!" Po said.

Then he and the kids headed into town.

"Alright. Let's make this the best birthday ever!" Leon said.

Then he and Shadow headed off to set it up, while Po took the kids into town.

"So *pant* what do *pant* you want *pant* to do?" Po asked, when they finally got into town.

"The toy cart!" They both cried. Then they ran off, again.

"*sigh* WAIT FOR ME!" Po yelled, as he took off after them.

But the two cubs were far ahead of him, by that time.

'_Man! Their fast…' _Po thought, when he finally caught up with them. _'just like Shadow and Leon!'_

*Chor Ghom Prison*

Tanis walked up the halls of the prison. He was allow a small amount of free time. But he was _still _very well guarded. Tanis could see the traps and guards that lined the halls. But he wasn't afraid of them. Not at all!

'_Soon; I will return. Soon; the Valley of Peace will fall. And soon; I will be the ruler of it all. _Just_ like it was meant to be!' _Tanis thought, as he continued his stroll along the hallway.

"Yo, Tanis! Good to see ya!" one of the inmates called.

Tanis nodded his head towards him, in acknowledgement. _'I've made so many "friends" here. It's _so_ nice to be noticed!' _Tanis thought with a smile.

Then one of the Rhino guards walked up to him and yelled, "There you are. Come on! It's time for dinner!"

Then the Rhino pushed Tanis back to his cell and set his dinner down in front of him. Tanis looked at it, disgusted. It would have been better, if they called it by it's proper name. Slop! But it was all he had. He had grown used to eating it. When that's all you're giving. You'll eat it!

'_Yes... soon the Valley of Peace will fall. And I'll have those awful Tiger's! And their precious little children too!' _Tanis thought happily. Then he dug into his dinner. And began to plot his revenge...

**Well, well, well! It would seem that someone is planning a jail brake! But will he be able to do it? And what about Silver and Blaze's birthday party? What's that going to be like? Guess you'll just have to wait a little bit. But don't worry! I'll have a new part posted before you know it!**


	5. Party time!

**Ok, for starters. I am SO sorry about taking forever with my updating! My BFFL came over and we were together for four days! So yeah. I have had NO time to get on here and write! So yeah. Sorry about that! And hope you all enjoy the chapter!**

**Oh and one other thing. The character, Fern is not mine. She belongs to the TOTALLY AWESOME Purplily! So yeah. Check her out on the Nick boards! Her stories **_**ROCK**_**!**

_Chapter five: Party time!_

Leon and Shadow were busy decorating for their children's party. They still couldn't believe that they were turning ten. It just seemed like yesterday that they were both new born cubs.

"Hey! Are you almost done, Hon?" Leon asked. He looked over at his wife and smiled.

"Yeah, and it's a good thing to. Po and the kids will be back soon!" Shadow replied.

They had gotten Shifu to agree to letting them use the Training Hall for the kids party. And as a part of the kids party and present, they were going to let them try out the course.

"Do you think that they're going to like it?" Tigress asked. She walked over to Shadow and looked around the room with a small smile on her face.

"Oh, I know they will!" Shadow said with a smile.

*Valley of Peace. Further in town*

After finally catching up with the twin Tigers. Po told, Silver and Blaze that it was time to head for home.

"Aww!" they both said at the same time. They both pouted and frowned.

"Hey! Don't you want to get back for your party?" Po asked. A grin on his face

"Oh yeah!" Silver said, slapping himself on the forehead.

"Haha! We almost forgot about it!" Blaze said with a laugh.

"Well then, come on. Let's go!" Po said. Then he took off running as fast as his stubby legs would carry him. With the Silver and Blaze, hot on his heels.

"So what do you think mama and daddy got us, Blaze?" Silver asked as they ran, side by side.

"I don't know! But whatever it is, it's gotta be cool!" Blaze said happily.

Silver smiled at his sister. As they had grown. They had also grown a bond. And it was just as Leon suspected. They would have a bond that would _never _be broken. Not even for the greatest riches of the world. They both cared to much for each other.

*Jade Palace. Training Hall*

"Is everything ready?" Master Shifu asked.

He and the rest of the Furious Five walked into the Training Hall. They all walked over to the three Tigers. Who were doing a final check of the room.

"It is indeed, Master Shifu!" Shadow said. A broad smile on her face.

"The kids are going to _love _this!" Leon said. He had a smile as wide as Shadow's.

"Hey! Here they come!" Monkey said.

They all looked at each other, then ran to find a hiding spot. Po walked in first and ran to find a spot to hide as well. Then Silver and Blaze walked in. They both looked around, then everybody jumped out.

"Surprise!" They all yelled together.

"WOW!" Silver exclaimed in shock.

"Way past cool!" Blaze said, looking around the room happily.

"Happy birthday, Ad'ika's*!" Shadow said, as she walked over to them.

Leon walked over with her and scooped the two cubs up. "Oh... You two are getting to big!" Leon said, as he gave them both a hug. Shadow walked over and Silver jumped into her arms and hugged her neck. Blaze did the same to her father. They all were grinning ear to ear.

"So. Are you two ready to party?" Po asked.

"YEAH!" Silver and Blaze cried, as they jumped down from their parents arms and ran around in circles.

"You know. At this rate, they'll be to tried to try out the Training course!" Shadow teased.

Silver and Blaze both slid to a halt. Then they ran up to their mother and looked up at her with, hopeful expressions.

"You mean, we _really_ get to try it out?" Silver asked.

"Yes! Now whaddya say? You wanna give it a go?" Leon asked.

"You bet we do!" Blaze said, excitedly.

The two cubs both jumped up and down happily. Shadow and Leon laughed at them. Then the cubs ran over to the course. They both stood by the start. Neither of them could hold still.

"Now then... to show you two, how to do the course, is an old friend of ours!" Leon said.

He and Shadow walked over to the two cubs. Leon wrapped his arm around Shadow's waist. She smiled at him. Silver and Blaze looked at each other, wondering who it was.

"Now, I don't know if you'll remember her. She came to visit you two, when you were little. But either way, I would like to welcome none other then; Fern!" Shadow said, with a broad smile.

Then Fern came bounding though the door. She was a beautiful, half Fox, half Skunk. She had a kind smile and a kinder heart. She was wonderful when it came to taking care of her friends, when they were sick or hurt. And she never backed down from a challenge.

"Hi everybody!" Fern said. She walked over to her friends and smiled.

"Hi Fern! I'm so glad you could make it. How have things been going in your neck of the woods?" Tigress asked. Walking over to her.

"It's been going well. Better then the first time we went there! Now... who wants to learn how to use the course?" Fern asked. Winking at Shadow.

Silver and Blaze run over and started jumping up and down and cried, "We do, we do!"

"Well then, let's get this thing going!" Fern said with a grin.

She walked over to the start of the course. She closed her eyes for a moment. Then opened them and took off running through the course.

She jumped high over the Wooden Warriors, then landed on the Fiery Field of Death. She twisted and turned. Making her way through it. Then she ran through the Seven Swinging clubs. Then when she got to the other side, she back flipped off. Landing on her feet, then bowing to her friends.

Everyone clapped, while Silver and Blaze ran over to her, smiling and laughing.

"WOW!" they both exclaimed.

Fern laughed and said, "Your turn!"

The two cubs then took their turn. They didn't do it quite as well as Fern had, but they made it though. Both smiling the widest smiles that they ever had.

"That was... _AWESOME_!" Silver said, when he had finished the course as well.

"I _know_!" Blaze cried out happily.

Blaze had gone through the course first, followed by Silver.

"I'm glad you two had fun!" Fern said, with a smile.

"Come on! There's more fun to be had!" Shadow said, walking over to a table that had a HUGE birthday cake and lots of presents on it.

"WOW!" the kids both exclaimed, staring at each other, wide eyed.

Then they ran over to the table. Everyone talked and just had a blast. Fern told everyone about how things were going, where she lived and they told her about how things had been going with them. Then it was time for the kids to open up their presents.

"Thank you so much, everyone!" Blaze said, as she and Silver finished opening their gifts.

"Well... we have one more gift for you!" Leon said, as Shadow walked over to the table and pulled two small box's out from under it.

"Here... open them!" Shadow said, handing the little box's to the cubs.

They both opened them quickly and smiled in awe.

"There beautiful!" Blaze cried.

"Yeah!" Silver agreed.

Leon and Shadow, had gotten them both beautiful necklace's.

For Silver; they got one that looked like a White Tiger. It was made out of, silver. And it had the words, water and wind, written on it above and below the Tiger. With water above the Tiger and wind below the Tiger.  
For Blaze; they got one that looked like an South Chinese Tiger. It was made out of ruby. And it had the word, fire written below the Tiger. With flames above the Tiger.

Leon took Blaze's necklace and walked behind her and helped her put it on. Shadow did the same to Silver. Then they walked back around and smiled down at them. Leon and Shadow were so proud of their children.

"Happy birthday, you two!" Shadow said. She had never felt so happy before in her life.

"Thanks mama! Thanks daddy!" Blaze said, as she held her necklace close.

"Yeah! This is the best birthday, _ever_! We've got all our friends _and_ the Dragon Aid!" Silver said happily.

"Well, I'm very glad that I could come and be here with you all!" Fern said.

Soon, the party ended and Fern had to leave for her home.

"Come back and play with us again soon, Miss Fern!" Silver yelled.

"Yes! And thank you for coming!" Blaze added.

"I will! You're welcome! And, good bye everyone! See you soon!" Fern called, as she left the Jade Palace.

*Later that night. Silver and Blaze's room*

Shadow and Leon both walked into their kids room. Shadow had Silver in her arms and Leon had Blaze. Both cubs were exhausted from the day. They had just run and played until they both dropped. Shadow and Leon laid the two cubs down in there beds and tucked them in.

"Sweet dreams, my wonderful little ones!" Shadow said.

She bent down and kissed Silver on his forehead. Then she walked over and did the same to Blaze.

"Night mama! Night daddy!" Silver and Blaze both said quietly.

Then they both snuggled deeper into their covers, for a good night's sleep.

Shadow and Leon smiled, then walked out and headed for their own room.

But as they did, Shadow thought back to her dream. She had been having them move and more often. And it was worrying her greatly. She was afraid that Tanis really would brake out of prison and that he would come after her family.

As she and Leon both crawled into bed. She swore to herself, that no matter what happened. She would _never _let Tanis hurt her family. Not ever...

**Alright, there's the next chapter! Again, sorry about the wait and I hope you all liked it! So yeah. But it sure makes you wonder. Can Tanis **_**really **_**brake out of prison? All I'm going to say is. You **_**never **_**know who's going to show up! So yeah, don't forget to leave your review! And be sure to check back soon for the next chapter to, Beginning's and Endings!**

_Author's note:  
__Ad'ika's/Ad'ika means 'Little One' in the Star Wars language, Mandalorian._


	6. The Dream

**Alright! FINALLY got time to write! (no pun intended). So yeah, I'm just gonna shut up and let you read.**

_Chapter six: The Dream_

"No... No leave them alone... No, _NO_!" Shadow screamed, bolting forward in bed.

She looked around, panting heavily and sighed. She was safe and sound at the Jade Palace. She saw Leon sleeping peacefully beside her. He rolled over and sighed. She smiled at him as she watched him sleep. He could always make her smile, even in the darkest of times.

She didn't want to wake him up, so she quietly got out of bed and made her way to the Training Hall.

*Jade Palace. Training Hall*

'_Maybe some training will get my mind off of... _that_ dream!' _Shadow thought, as she pushed the huge door's open. She slowly walked towards the Fiery Field of Death.

'_Should I?' _she thought, as she stared at it. _'No... I better not. I don't want to start freaking out over the fire! I've already had my scare for a while, what with _that_ dream!' _

So Shadow walked over to the Jade Tortoise Shell. (You see. Shadow is afraid of fire. But she doesn't like to show it. And she doesn't like to talk about it much, so we'll save that for another time!)

Shadow walked over and leapt up into the air. She flipped forward once, then landed on the edge of the bowl. It dipped lightly, under her weight. She smiled. She liked to practice her balance

She stood on one foot, raising her left leg up behind her. Then she stood on the other. Then she bent down and kicked her legs up, as she stood on her front paws in a hand stand. After a few minutes, she could feel that she had calmed down. So she jumped down from the edge and started to walk away.

She hadn't gotten but a few feet away, when a bright light, flashed in her eyes and she had another dream.

_Shadow looked around and saw Tanis. Behind him, she saw Silver and Blaze, sitting on their knees, holding each other tight. They were both crying; crying for her._

_Then she saw Leon, as he tried to attack Tanis. But he was tossed aside, like a rag doll._

_Shadow stared at Tanis in anger. Then he said something she wished she could forget._

_"So. Who's going to get it? You or your children?" Tanis asked Shadow._

_She could see him holding something in his large paws. And she feared what it was._

_"I will _never_ let you hurt them!" she yelled at him._

_He just stared at her and smiled. Then said, "So be it..."_

_And then he lunged at her. She raised her arms up, to try and block his attack. But she failed to do so. He soon had his claws around her throat. She hung limply in his grasp. Staring at him with fear in her eyes._

_"MAMA!" Silver and Blaze both cried, as they watched Tanis, smiling evilly at Shadow._

"_Soon. It'll all be over!" Tanis whispered in her ear. Shadow bared her teeth at him, as she felt him tightening his grip. She closed her eyes. Not wanting to see her children's faces._

Then her dream ended.

Shadow stood in the middle of the Training Hall, trembling and panting heavily. Then she dropped down to her knee's and sobbed. That dream had brought back so many horrible memories; memories of her childhood; memories of her parents; and the fears that she had for her family.

'_No matter what happens. No matter what he tries to do to me. I will _never_ let him hurt my family!' _Shadow thought.

Then she slowly rose to her feet and walked outside. Closing the doors to the Training Hall, behind her.

*Early the next morning*

Leon slowly opened his eyes and saw that the sun was barely coming through the window. Meaning it was still very early in the morning. He slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes, sleepily. He turned to look for his wife, But found that Shadow was gone.

'_I wonder where Shad is?' _Leon thought.

Then he crawled out of bed, grabbed his vest off the end of the bed, slipped it on, then he went outside to look for Shadow. He found her sitting by the lake. He could tell that she was upset about something.

'_Something must be wrong for her to be up _this _early…' _Leon thought, as he walked over to her.

"Shadow? Are you alright?" he asked, laying a paw on her shoulder.

Shadow flinched at Leon's touch, but relaxed when she realized it was just him.

"What's wrong? You _never_ jump when I come up behind you!" Leon said.

Shadow sighed. He shook his head and sat down beside her.

"I had another one last night..." she said quietly.

Leon frowned. "Shadow... why is this bothering you so much?" he asked.

"I just keep getting this feeling, that Tanis will be back..." Shadow said, looking up at Leon.

Leon nodded his head. He understood what this could mean. Shadow sometimes had feelings about things.

And usually, her feelings were right.

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and said, "Come on. Let's just forget about it for now. The kids will be up soon and their going to come find us. We need to act happy, so they don't pick up on this. You _know_ how good they are at that!"

Shadow smiled at the thought of her kids. They could always make her smile. The same with Leon.

"Alright... but just for now!" Shadow said.

Leon smiled and kissed her on the cheek. Then they both rose to their feet and headed towards the Jade Palace.

'_No need to tell him about my _special_ dream. He doesn't need to worry anymore about me…' _Shadow thought, as she and her husband walked up the Jade Palace steps.

And once inside, they were both tackled to the ground by their children.

"Mama! Daddy! We've been looking for you!" Silver cried, as he pounced on Shadow.

"Yeah! Where ya been?" Blaze asked. She was sitting on top of Leon.

"Oh... mama and daddy were just having some, alone time!" Leon said, as he winked at Shadow.

She smiled sweetly at him. Silver and Blaze both rolled their eyes and giggled quietly.

"Oh, fine! But come on. It's time for breakfast!" Silver said.

Then Silver pulled Shadow to her feet and dragged her along with him.

"We're coming, we're coming!" Leon said, as Blaze dragged him along as well.

The kids both laughed and ran faster. Shadow and Leon both smiled. Silver and Blaze always knew how to make them smile, when they were down...

**Well, it would seem that Shadow is having a lot of dreams lately! But do they mean something? And will Shadow tell Leon about them? And **_**what**_** about Tanis? Find out more soon! And please don't forget to. **_**REVIEW!**_


	7. The Plan!

**Alright. I do believe it's time for a new chapter! I hope you all enjoy it. Believe me. This one is going to be GOOD!**

_Chapter seven: The Plan!_

*Chor Ghom Prison*

Tanis sat on the cot in his cell. He was planning his escape. But he knows that he needs someone to help him. But who? Who will help _him_? He knows that it has to be someone that he can trust with his life. And he knew _just _who to call on!

"Yo Tanis! You've got some visitors!" one of the guards yelled, as he unlocked the door to Tanis' cell.

The door swung open and a beautiful Lioness walked in. She was tall and slender. But muscles could be seen in her arms and legs. She was followed closely by two young cubs. A boy and a girl.

"I'll leave you to your visit. But if he give's you trouble; just yell!" the guard said to the Lioness.

She smiled at him and nodded her head politely. Then the guard turned and walked out the door, closing it behind him. As soon as he was gone, the kids ran to Tanis and embraced him in a tight hug.

"DADDY!" they cried as they hugged him.

"Oh, how I've missed you!" Tanis said, as he hugged them.

Then he released them and stood up. He smiled at the Lioness

"Shakira..." Tanis said, walking over to her.

"How are you, dear? Shakira asked, as Tanis pulled her into a hug.

"It hasn't been the same, without you, my love!" Tanis said.

Then he turned to the kids and asked, "Have you two been behaving your mother?"  
"Yes daddy!" the two said, bowing to him, respectfully

Then Shakira spoke up, "Are you sure this is a good idea, Tanis? I don't know if we can pull this off!"

Shakira stopped and stared down at her children.

"Do you want me out of here or not?" Tanis asked.

Shakira was silent for a moment. "I just don't want our children to be hurt..." she said quietly.

Tanis nodded his head. He knew how much she loved and cared for them. Then he said, "Yes... but if I don't get out of here. We'll never get those Tiger's, who put me here in the first place!" Tanis growled angrily.

"*sigh* I know." Shakira replied.

"Daddy. We want to help too!" the younger Lioness said, pulling on Tanis' pant leg.

He smiled down at her and said, "I know you do, Kira! But it will be very dangerous!"  
"Yeah. But we're ready! We want you back with us, daddy!" the young boy said.

"Ah... My dear, Lancelot! A warrior in training. Do you _really_ believe you're ready for this?" Tanis asked.

"Dad! It's Lance! Remember? And you _bet_ I'm ready!" Lance said. A smile on his face.

Tanis smiled down at him and said, "Yes... I _do_ believe you are ready. We will be together soon! And remember. Be nice to them!" Tanis said.

"We will!" Kira and Lance both said.

Tanis looked back to his wife. "Keep them safe, my love!" Tanis said, as he kissed Shakira on the cheek.

"I will... but why must we do this? Why must you have revenge, Tanis? Why can't we just live in peace?" she asked. The question she had always wondered.

"It is to complicated to explain... just trust me!" Tanis said.

Shakira nodded slowly. Than the door crashed open, as the guard came to tell them, that their time was up.

"Ha! Hope you had a good time, Tanis!" the guard said, as Shakira, Lance and Kira walked out.

"And why is that?" Tanis asked.

"Because! I hear that your ex-apprentice are going to be coming up here, to do a monthly review! Maybe he'll say he doesn't like you anymore and give us permission to finish you off!" the guard said with a smile.

Tanis just bared his teeth at the guard and growled. The guard smiled and closed the door, locked it, and walked away. Leading Shakira and her cubs away from the cell.

"So. What's the deal with you? I don't think I've ever seen anyone want to visit _him_! At least not with kids." the guard said to Shakira, as they walked through the halls.

"I... like to show my children, what happens when you do bad things!" Shakira said. But in her mind... She truly believed that.

*Jade Palace*

Everyone met in the Dinning Hall and had breakfast together. Then they all went their separate ways. Po and The Five, minus Tigress, went into town. Tigress, Leon, Silver and Blaze went to go do some training together. Master Shifu went to go meditate and Shadow had gone back out to the lake. Just to sit and think.

Shadow sat on her knees. She sat very still. She still thought about the dream she had, had. What had it meant? Was Tanis really coming back? Was he _really _going to hurt her family? She shuddered at the thought of him coming and hurting them. Then suddenly, she heard screaming. And she knew who's scream it was.

"SILVER!" she cried, jumping to her feet.

But it wasn't real. It was another dream.

*Shadow's Dreamscape*

_Shadow saw Silver; he was sitting on his knee's. Clutching his right arm. He was crying and screaming in pain._

_Shadow tried to run to him, to help him._

_But every time she tried. He would always seem farther away._

_She ran as fast as she could, but just as she was about to reach out for him._

The dream ended.

*Real world*

Shadow stood rooted to the spot, panting heavily. Fear coursed through her body, at what she had just seen. Then she fell to her knees and sobbed.

Then Silver came running out to the lake. He had heard her scream his name.

"Mama! What's wrong?" he asked quickly, kneeling down beside her.

She turned to look at him. Her face was tear stained. Then she reached out and pulled him close to her. He hugged her, then pulled away.

"Mama. Are you alright?" Silver asked, worried.

Shadow sniffled and Silver reached up and wiped away a tear. "I'm alright! Mama was just having a bad dream! That's all..." Shadow replied quietly.

"Well... Ok! If you say so. Would it make you feel better, if I sat here with you?" Silver asked.

Shadow smiled "Yes... I'd think it would make me feel better!" she replied.

Silver smiled and sat down beside her. Shadow smiled at her son and tried to shake that dream away. She tried to forget how real it had been. And what it _really_ could mean...

**Goodness me! That sure makes you wonder what's going to happen! Can Shadow protect her family? Will Tanis escape? And one other thing I'm sure you weren't expecting. Tanis has a wife and kids! There are more surprises, just waiting to pop up. So be sure to check back soon, for more! And **_**please **_**don't forget to **_**REVIEW!**_


	8. Journey to the Jade Palace

**Ok. Time for the next chapter! I sure hope that you all like it! So yeah, read, review, but most importantly. ENJOY!**

_Chapter eight: Journey to the Jade Palace_

*A few hours later*

Shadow and Silver sat out by the lake for a while, just talking about random things. Just having some, mother and son, time

Then after a little while, Leon and Blaze came to tell the two White Tigers, that it was time for lunch.

Silver and Blaze raced to the Dinning Hall, while Shadow and Leon hung back. They watched them run up the steps and into the jade colored building.

"Shadow, honey, what's wrong? You seem upset!" Leon said, as they walked to the palace, together.

"*sigh* I guess that I should tell you..." she replied quietly.

Leon stopped walking and turned to face her, and he waited to hear what she had to say.

"I've been having dreams..." she said quietly.

Leon cocked his head and stared at her, confused. "But. I thought you said-"  
"No. Not those _other _dreams. I mean my _special _dreams!" Shadow said.

Leon slowly nodded his head in understanding. "What were they about?"  
"You and the kids! Tanis was after you all. He was hurting you. And there was nothing I could do to stop him!" Shadow said, as a tear slipped down her face.

Leon gently wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him. She rested her head on his shoulder, as he rubbed her back, caringly.

"Hey! It's ok! We're here. Together. Our friends friend's are here to help us. They won't let us be hurt, by him. I won't let _you _be hurt by him!" Leon said.

Shadow looked up at him and just shook her head. "I will _not_ let him hurt my family!" she said.

"And neither will _I_!" Leon said.

He smiled and kissed Shadow's forehead. She smiled at him. Then they grasped one another's paws, and headed for the Jade Palace.

*Later that day*

The beautiful, Shakira walked through the Valley of Peace. Her children following close behind.

"Mama? Why are we doing this?" Kira asked, as she followed after her brother and mother.

"Well... *sigh* sometime's even _I_ don't know!" Shakira replied.

"Can't you remember _anything_, Kira? We're doing this to get dad out of prison! So that he can be back with us again! He doesn't belong in there. He didn't do anything! Right mama?" Lance asked.

Shakira just stared straight ahead and didn't answer him. She just continued to head for the Jade Palace. For she truly wasn't sure of the answer.

*The Jade Palace. Hall of Heroes*

Po watched as the twin Tiger cubs, chased each other in circles. They were trying to pounce on each other, but it wasn't working for either of them.

"Blaze! Stop pushing!" Silver complained, as Blaze ran up along side him.

"_You _stop pushing!" she replied, with a smirk on her face.

Po rolled his eyes and thought, _'They really _are_ like, Leon and Shadow!'_

Then he walked over to the two cubs and said, "How about _both _of you, stop pushing!"

Po had gotten stuck with babysitting duty, while everybody else had gone into town, to pick up supplies.

The kids slid to a halt and looked at each other. They smiled. Then they both yelled, "GET HIM!"

They both pounced on the Panda. He quickly pushed them off and started to run away from them.

"Oh no! I'm being attack by Tiger monsters!" Po yelled, as he ran, as fast as his legs would carry him.

Silver and Blaze both grinned and took off after the fleeing, Panda. Po ran as quickly as he could. Then there was a knock at the door.

'_Saved by the bell! Or door...' _Po thought, as he stopped running and went to see who it was.

When he opened the door, he saw a Lioness and two cubs. Silver and Blaze poked their heads around him, to see who it was. When they saw the two kids, they smiled at them. The Lion cubs smiled back.

"Hi there! Is there something I can help you with?" Po asked.

The Lioness looked up at him and smiled. "My cubs and I have no place to stay. I was hoping that you could spare some space for us. Just for a few days!" she explained, sweetly.

Po thought for a moment. "Well... I guess it wouldn't be a problem. As long as it's ok with, Master Shifu!" Po replied at last.

Silver and Blaze both jumped up and down, happily. Finally, there were going to be more kids in the palace to play with.

"Thank you very much! Your kindness is much appreciated!" the Lioness said happily. Then she shook her head. "Oh! Where are my manners? My name is Shakira! And these are my children. Kira and Lancelot!"

Lance and Kira stepped forward and bowed politely. Then Lance said, "Please. Call me, Lance!"

Po smiled at them. "Well, my name is Po. And this is, Silver and Blaze!" Po said, motioning to the two, bouncing cubs, behind him,

"Hi!" Blaze said.

"Welcome to the Jade Palace!" Silver said, cheerfully.

"Come in. I'll show you to your room!" Po said, leading them inside.

'_They're really nice! I wonder why dad would tell us to do something, _so_ mean to them?' _Lance thought as he followed after the Panda.

Pretty soon they were settled into their new room, and the others had returned home.

"What do we have here?" Shifu asked, when he saw Shakira and her cubs.

"Master Shifu. This is Shakira, Kira and Lancelot!" Po said.

Lance rolled his eyes. "Please! Just call me, Lance!" he said.

Shakira walked over and placed her paws on his shoulders. He looked up at her and smiled at his mother.

"Grand Master Shifu. We were hoping that we could stay here for a little while. Master Po said we were welcome too! As long as we had your blessing." Shakira said.

Shifu nodded his head. "Well... I guess that will be alright. Make yourselves home!" Shifu said.

Shakira smiled and bowed to the small Master. He returned her bow and then walked away.

Soon everyone had been introduced to one another. Shadow and Shakira hit it off, very well. But maybe that was because they both were mother's.

Then after a little while, Silver, Blaze, Kira and Lance asked to go play outside, together. Their parents said yes. And watched them run off.

"So. How old are yours?" Shadow asked, Shakira.

"Lance is eleven. And Kira is nine. But she will be turning ten soon! What about yours?" Shakira asked.

"Silver and Blaze just turned ten!" Leon said.

Shadow smiled thoughtfully. Shakira watched her and smiled. She understood what it was like having kids.

You would do _anything_ for them...

**Ok. Next chapter done! But trust me when I say this. Things are just getting warmed up! So yeah. Please, don't forget to **_**REVIEW!**_** And check back soon, for more!**


	9. More power's?

**Alright! Time for the next chapter! I hope you all like it! Believe me. Things are going to be heating up soon. Just trust me on that one. They really will! YOU'LL BELIEVE ME AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER! So I'm gonna hush and let you see JUST what I mean!**

_Chapter nine: More power's?_

Silver, Blaze, Lance and Kira ran though the Jade Palace. They were playing a game of tag. Then they all took off running, through the doors and outside, after Shifu yelled at them for disturbing him.

Silver and Blaze decided to take their new friends, out to the lake. It was their favorite place to play.

"This place is _amazing_!" Kira said, looking around.

Blaze smiled and said, "Glad you like it!"

Then they all ran around playing tag, until they fell to the ground, panting and laughing their heads off.

"That was fun!" Kira cried, through her pants and laughs.

"Yeah! We've _never _had so much fun before!" Lance said.

Blaze smiled at Lance. Then she rolled over on his side and stared at her brother. "Silver! We're hot! Will you do something about it?" she asked.

"Ugh! Fine!" Silver said, rolling his eyes.

Then he got to his feet and walked over to the lake. He lifted his paws up and held them in front of him. Then his paws started to glow blue. Then the water in the lake, shot up, high into the air, and rained gently down on them.

"Ah! Much better. Thanks bro!" Blaze said with a smile.

"You know me, Blaze! Happy to help!" Silver said, looking over at Kira and winking.

Kira turned her head and blushed. Lance just rolled his eyes at his little sister.

"So, umm, Silver! How did you do that with the water?" Kira asked, forcing a smile at Silver.

Now it was Silver's turn to blush. He tried to compose himself and said, "Oh that? Well, Blaze and I got our powers from mama, daddy and aunt Tigress! I got both of mama and daddy's power's. Water and Wind!"

"And I got, aunt Tigress' power. Fire!" Blaze said with a grin.

Lance and Kira stared at each other in shock.

"You have power over an element?" Kira asked slowly.

Silver and Blaze nodded there heads. The two Lion cubs smiled at each other.

"So do we!" Lance said.

Silver and Blaze looked at each other in surprise. Then they turned back to the cubs.

"You _do_?" Silver asked. Almost not believing that their new friends had powers, too!

"Yes! My power is Ice." Kira said.

Lance nodded his head and said, "And my power is Earth!"

A wide grin crossed Silver's maw, as he began to jump up and down happily. "So we all have power's! That's AWESOME!"

Blaze smiled in delight and said, "Yeah! It's like we were _meant _to be friends!"  
"Come on! Let's go tell the other's!" Silver said.

Lance looked over at Kira. She returned his look. They didn't seem to sure about that.

"What's wrong? Don't you want to tell everyone?" Blaze asked.

"Well... I guess we can!" Kira said.

Lance slowly nodded his head. "I _suppose_ it would be alright!" he said.

"Why wouldn't you want to?" Silver asked.

"Our daddy told us, not to tell many people!" Kira explained.

"Well, if you don't want to, we can keep it a secret!" Blaze said.

Lance smiled at her. She smiled back at him and she almost thought she saw him blush.

"Yeah! We can keep it to ourselves. But that means _you _can't tell anybody about _our _powers, either!" Silver said.

"Haven't you told your parents?" Lance asked.

"Oh yes! They know. So does everybody in the Jade Palace. But most of the people in the Valley of Peace don't know. So we won't tell, if you won't tell!" Blaze said.

Lance and Kira nodded their heads and Kira said, "Agreed!"

They all rose to their feet, stuck out their paws and placed them on top of one another's. They all looked up at one another. Then they took off for the Jade Palace. Smiling all the way.

*Chor Ghom Prison*

'_They think their so smart! Well... they will soon learn how _wrong _they are!' _Tanis thought as he ate his dinner, which he still considered to be, slop!

He knew that one of the guards would be coming to pick up his empty bowl. Though he still had no idea why he ate this stuff. When the guard came, unlocked and opened the door. Tanis made his move.

He pushed off the wall, and ran at the guard. He leapt high in the air and kicked the guard, knocking him to the floor. Then he dropped to all fours, ran through the door and then through the many halls, which he had memorized, for this very moment.

Suddenly an alarm went off.

'_They think they can scare me, huh? Guess again!' _Tanis thought, as he ran up a tall flight of stairs and towards the bridge.

"HALT!" the lead Rhino guard yelled out.

Tanis slid to a halt and looked up. Hundreds of Rhinos, stood guarding the door to freedom. Tanis bared his fangs in an evil smile.

"You're going back in your cell, Tanis!" the head Rhino yelled.

Tanis smiled even more at that comment. "That's what you think!" Tanis yelled to them. Then he took off running, as fast as he could. Then he leapt into the air and cried out, angrily, "LIGHENING STRIKE!"

Twin bolts of lightening, shot out at the guards. They all ran for cover, while Tanis made his escape.

He ran through the doors, down the snow covered mountain and straight to the Valley of Peace.

'_I'm coming for you, Shadow. I'm coming for your best friend. And I'm coming for your husband! You will _all_ fall before me. Even if I have to use your precious little children to do it. The Valley of Peace will fall down. And I _will _be king of all the land!' _Tanis thought, as he ran.

Straight to the Valley of Peace...

**UH OH! Tanis had broken free! And is heading for the Valley of Peace! But what will happen now? Will he get to the Jade Palace? Will our heroes be able to stop him? And just what has he sent, Shakira, Lance and Kira there for? Guess we'll find out more later. But until then. Please don't forget to **_**REVIEW!**_


	10. Time for a reunion

**Hey all! SOOOO sorry about the long wait! I've been hanging out with my BFFL!:) So yeah. Haven't had much time to write! So yeah. Here's the next chapter! Hope you like it!**

_Chapter ten: Time for a reunion_

*A few days later*

Shadow walked through the halls of the Jade Palace. She had her black and blue bag, slung over her shoulder. She had decided to venture into town.

She had been worrying a lot, since she had been having these dreams. Or better yet. Nightmares! And she thought, that it would be best to just get away and forget about thing's for a few hours. Just have a little fun.

Leon, Silver, Blaze, Lance and Kira stood at the doorway, ready to say good bye to Shadow. Then Leon was going to take the four cubs to go do some training.

"You enjoy yourself, Hon!" Leon said.

Shadow nodded and smiled. He leaned down and kissed her, good bye. Blaze and Kira both said, 'aw!', while Silver and Lance both said, 'ew'

Shadow and Leon smiled and laughed at them.

Then Shadow bent down, and let her kids run up and hug her. "You be good. And listen to your father!" Shadow said, to Silver and Blaze.

"We will!" they both said with a smile.

Then they let Shadow go and backed away. Smiling at her.

"I'll see you all, later!" Shadow said.

Then she waved good by and walked down the many step's, and into the Valley of Peace.

Leon turned to his kids and the two Lion cubs. "Come on kid's! Let's go to the Training Hall. I've got some new trick's to show you!" Leon said.

"YEAH!" the four cubs cried happily. Then they took off running for the Training Hall.

"Ugh… wait for me!" Leon yelled, dropping down on all fours and taking off after them.

'_Kid's…' _he thought with a smile, as he ran after them.

*The Valley of Peace*

Shadow walked through town, just looking around. She always enjoyed looking at all the shops and people, bustling around. Then she found an open spot, and she pulled up a barrel and then sat down on it. She reached into her bag and pulled out a beautiful flute. It was blue and had wave's on it, like water.

Leon had given it to her as a wedding present. Shadow always played it when she was sad. And this was one of those times.

She slowly brought the flute to her lips and began to play a beautiful tune. Pretty soon, children of all kinds, came and danced around her.

When she stopped playing, the children all clapped their paws, hooves, or wings, and then begged for her to play another song. Shadow smiled at them and then played some more.

Pretty soon, Shadow was up dancing along with the children. She played her flute and danced around. The children danced and laughed. Shadow smiled through her flute and continued her song. Before to long, the song ended and Shadow took a bow.

All the children thanked her and ran off to find their parents. Shadow smiled at them, as she watched them walk away with their parents.

'_Why couldn't that have been me?' _she thought sadly, as she watched them.

Then a little girl bunny, walked over and pulled on her pant leg. Shadow looked down at her and smiled.

She bent down to the little bunnies, level. "Why, hello there! Can I help you?" she asked sweetly.

"Um. I didn't get to hear you play. Could you play another song? Please!" the little bunny asked.

Shadow smiled even more and said, "I'd be happy to!"

Shadow closed her eyes and brought the flute to her lips again, then she began to play it again. The little bunny smiled in delight, then she started to dance around. Her brother and sister ran over and joined her in her dance. Shadow smiled through her flute again, as she watched them dance about.

Soon her song came to an end and the children clapped and thanked her. Then they ran off with their parents. Shadow walked over to fetch her bag. It was getting late and she had promised Leon, that she would be home before dusk.

She placed her flute into her bag and pulled the flap over it.

Then a voice rang out form behind her. "Could you play, just one more song, my dear?"

Shadow was about to say that she would be back again, later tomorrow. When she snapped her head up and her blood turned cold. She felt as if the world had stopped completely. She turned around and suddenly felt very faint, as she saw who stood before her.

She gasped and whispered fearfully, "Tanis..."

Her whole body shook. She felt as if she couldn't move one inch of it. Her worst nightmare was coming true. Tanis had returned to the Valley of Peace!

"Well. I see you remember me. How nice!" Tanis said, with an evil smile.

"I could _never_ forget you! Or what you did to me! You took away _everything_! My home; my life; my family! And the worst part. You took Leon from me. You _knew _how much I cared for him. But you didn't _care_!" Shadow cried out angrily.

Tanis just smiled at her. "Ah, little Shadow. Still you haven't learned!" Tanis said, advancing towards her.

Shadow backed away from him, fearfully. "You stay _away_ from me!" she screamed. Then she asked, "And just _what_ haven't I learned?"

Tanis continued to walk towards her, Shadow backed herself into a wall. Trying to stay as far away from Tanis as she possibly could.

"You still haven't learned, not to make me mad!" Tanis growled.

Shadow bared her teeth at him and growled. He smiled at her. Then he attacked.

Shadow fought hard. She had learned so much, in the year's that had past.

Shadow brought her arms up, to block his first set of attacks, then she countered with a Reverse Round House Kick. Tanis stumbled backwards. Shadow used this to her advantage. She ran at him and attacked with a Palm Strike to his chest. He brought his arm up and grasped his claws around her wrist. She yelped, as she yanked her arm away from him and stumbled backwards. Tanis swung his legs low and tried to knock her off her feet. She quickly went into a Reverse Hand Spring. She landed on her feet and got ready for round two.

"You have been training, haven't you?" Tanis asked, as he watched the panting tigress. He knew she wouldn't be able to last much longer.

"Uhn! You bet I have!" Shadow yelled.

Then she raced at Tanis and swung her claws at his face. He dodged and used that failed attack against her. He swung his legs around and under hers. Knocking her off her feet. She fell to the ground, hard. Knocking all the air out of her lungs. She laid there, panting hard. Trying to catch her breath, again.

Tanis smiled down at her as he watched her, lying there. Panting and trembling. Then he reached down, wrapping his claws around her throat, and lifted her off the ground and high into he air.

Then he turned and smashed her into the wall. She grasped her paws around his arm. Trying to pry herself lose of his grip. But it wasn't working. He merely tightened his hold on her. Tanis smiled at the squirming tigress in his grasp.

But what Tanis didn't know, was that their fight had been watched, by one of the little children who had dance with Shadow.

The young bunny watched in fear as Tanis held Shadow against the wall. Ever so slowly, tightening his grip on her throat. Knowing that this could turn to nothing but bad. The little bunny quickly ran to the Jade Palace.

She ran up the steps, into the palace and then into the dinning room. Where everyone was having dinner.

*The Jade Palace. Dinning Hall*

Everyone was sitting at the table. All the chairs were filled, expect for one, which was next to Leon.

Leon glanced over at the empty chair and said, to no one in particular, "I wonder what's keeping Shadow? She's _never _this late!"

Leon was very worried about Shadow. He always was.

Then they all looked up, when they heard footsteps, coming down the hall.

"Help! Somebody _please_ help!" the little bunny yelled, as she ran into the Jade Palace Dinning Hall.

"What is it? What's going on?" Po asked.

The little bunny was panting hard, and stopped for a moment, to try and catch her breath. "Oh, Master Po! Thank goodness! There's trouble in the village!" the bunny said, still trying to catch her breath.

"Who is it? Is it Fung and his gang again?" Tigress asked, rolling her eyes slightly.

"HA! If it is, then they're in for a rude awaking. Shadow went down to the village today. She's probably still there! She'll probably have them dealt with, before we can get down the stairs!" Leon said.

The little bunny shook her head and said, "That's the problem! Master Shadow is in trouble!"

Leon stopped and stared at her. "What? _How _is she in trouble?" Leon asked.

"I don't know who it is. But this huge lion just started attacking her!" she replied.

Leon felt his blood run cold. He knew _exactly _who it was.

"Leon? Are you alright?" Viper asked.

Leon bared his teeth and started to growl, low. He said one thing, before dropping down on all fours and running for the village.

_Tanis!_

"Come on! Let's go!" Tigress yelled, following after her brother.

The other's followed closely behind the two Tigers.

'_Please. Oh _please _let us make it there in time!' _Leon thought as he sped towards the village...

**Well, well, well! What a turn of events! So what's going to happen now? Will Tanis hurt Shadow? Will Leon and the others make it there in time? WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN? So yeah. Hope you all liked it and please don't forget to **_**REVIEW!**_


	11. Time for a plan!

**Ok, here's the next chapter! I know that you've been waiting for a while, to see what'll happen! So yeah. LET'S DO THIS!**

_Chapter eleven: Time for a plan!_

*The Valley of Peace*

Tanis stood there, smiling evilly at Shadow. He still had a tight grasp on her throat. She wiggled and squirmed. Trying to brake free of his grasp. He then slowly started to tighten his grip, again.

Shadow stared at him fearfully.

"Do you _really _think I'm going to kill you?" Tanis asked.

"*pant, pant* What do you think?" Shadow asked.

"Hmm. Where are Leon and Tigress?" Tanis asked.

Shadow just growled and bared her teeth at him. He smiled even more. Then he leaned closer to her.

"You know... you really _are_ very pretty! I bet your children take after you." Tanis whispered in her ear, a grin on his face.

"How do you know about my children?" Shadow demanded, angrily.

"That is for me to know. And for you to find out!" Tanis replied. "now... I think it's time we got going!"

Shadow just stared at him in anger.

Then Tanis pulled Shadow away from the wall and slammed her into the ground. The blow was so hard, it knock the air, right out of her lungs. She took deep breathes, trying to catch her breath again. She was panting hard. Tanis smiled. She was weak and they both knew it.

'_It won't be hard to deal with her now!' _Tanis thought, sauntering over to her.

Shadow tried to back away from him, but she was to weak to move very quickly. Tanis walked to her and stomped down on her tail. Hard!

"OW!" Shadow cried out in pain.

She swung her tail around to look at it. It would be bruised for a while. Shadow growled at Tanis. He was really getting on her nerves. Tanis continued to saunter towards her.

"You _really_ think, I'm going to let you get away from me so easily? HA! That's a laugh." Tanis said, laughing his head off.

Shadow trembled in fear. What would happen to her now?

"I think that it's time you learned of my true power!" Tanis said, a smirk on his face.

Shadow just stared up at him. Afraid to find out just what his true power was. Tanis smiled down at her. Then he brought both paw's, level with her face.

"POWER SNAP!" Tanis yelled. A bright light shown out of his paw's and headed right for Shadow. The light engulfed the trembling tigress, then it disappeared. And all that was left, was an exhausted Shadow.

She panted hard and trembled badly. She looked up at Tanis. She had let him defeat her. And now, her family was in danger. All because she was to weak to stop him. He just smiled at her. As if he knew what she was thinking.

Then Shadow laid her head on the ground, still panting heavily. Then after another moment, she passed out.

Tanis smiled in delight. He had been practicing that move for a long time. And it would seem he had mastered it at last.

The move that Tanis used was, as he said, Power Snap. When used properly, it drain's it's victims' energy level's. And for poor, Shadow. Caused her to pass out and making it easy for Tanis to take her.

"Finally! For Tigress and your sweet heart, Leon to get you back, they'll have to come and get you. Well... heh, heh. If they can find you, that is!" Tanis said with a laugh.

Then he bent down and grabbed Shadow's arms. He hauled her up on his shoulders. Tanis bared his fangs, in an evil smile. He finally had her.

"I think that it's time we got going, don't you Shadow? Yes. I thought that you would agree. TELEPORT SHOCK!" Tanis growled.

Then lightening came up all around them. Then it vanished. Taking them along with it. There was no trace of them. As if they had never been there. Except for one thing...

*A few minute's later*

Leon, Po, Master Shifu and the Five, arrived on the scene of the battle. They looked around and saw the mess that had been made. They all looked around at the area. Leon felt fear creeping up inside him. Where was, Shadow?

Then Leon walked to an overturned barrel. He pushed it out of the way and picked up something. He stared at it, then felt hot tear's running down his face. He slowly got to his feet and held it close to his chest. He closed his eyes, and felt the tears coming faster.

It was the flute he had given Shadow at their wedding.

Po walked over and patted Leon on the back. "It's ok, Leon. We'll find her!" he said, trying to comfort him.

Tigress walked over and picked up Shadow's bag. She looked inside it and found a note. It was from Tanis.

"Leon! Take a look at this." Tigress said, handing him the note.

He took it from her and read it out loud.

_"'Dear Leon, Tigress and all you crazy people from the Jade Palace. If you ever want to see your beloved Shadow again. Then you will have to find her. I've taken her away with me and you will _never_ see her again, unless you find _me_. Good luck, Leon. You will need it! But, because I am _so_ nice, I believe that I shall give you a hint. It is close, yet so far away. Have fun searching, Leon! ~Tanis'"_

Leon handed the note to Tigress and walked over to a tree. He balled up a fist and then hit it as hard as he could.

"Leon... punching tree's isn't going to help us!" Tigress said, gently. She knew how mad her brother was. She was mad too.

"Daddy! Where's mama?" Silver asked, walking towards Leon.

Leon turned to see Shakira, Lance Kira, Silver and Blaze, walking towards them.

"Silver! Blaze! What are you two doing here?" Leon asked, walking to them.

"W-we wanted to help!" Blaze said, tear's welled up in her eyes.

Leon looked over at Shakira. "I'm sorry, Leon. They wouldn't stay at the palace. They wanted to help and they ran off after you!" Shakira apologized.

"No. It's alright!" Leon said, as he bent down and hugged his kids close.

"What happened to mama, daddy?" Silver asked, very worried.

Leon sighed sadly. "I'm afraid mama's been taken away by a very bad man!" Leon said.

"B-but we're gonna get her back, right?" Blaze asked, tears falling down her face.

Leon smiled, as he reached up and wiped her tears away. "You bet we are! Come on, guys. Let's get back to the Jade Palace and pack what we need. Then we're off to find Shadow!" Leon said.

They all nodded their head's and took off running, back to the Jade Palace...

**Oh my. It would seem that Tanis has taken Shadow captive. But what will happen now? Will Leon and the others find her? And what has Tanis planned for them? Be sure to come back and check for more soon! And also, please don't forget to, **_**REVIEW!**_** I'm telling ya, people. I LIVE OFF YOUR REVIEWS! So yeah. Please **_**review**_**!**


	12. Packing time

**Alright! I'm on a roll, it seems! I sure hope I stay this way and keep my writing up! So yeah. Hope you all enjoy this next chapter!**

_Chapter twelve: Packing time_

Everyone quickly returned to the Jade Palace. They all walked to the Student Barracks and went their separate ways. Each going to their own room.

Leon walked into his and Shadow's room. He slowly looked around the room.

Then he felt tear's prick his eyes. And before he could stop them, they rolled down his face. He walked over to the bed and sat down on it. He buried his face in his paw's and wept.

He couldn't lose Shadow. He loved her, with all his heart. He just couldn't lose her. She was his best friend; the mother of his children; his wife; his soul mate; She was always there for him. Why couldn't he have been there for her.

Just then, there was a quiet knock at the door. Leon looked up, when the door opened and saw Po walk in.

"Leon? Are you ok?" Po asked, as he sat down beside him.

"I can't lose her, Po! I just can't!" Leon confessed. The tear's were still spilling down his face.

"You're not gonna lose her. We're gonna get her back. You've just gotta believe that!" Po said, patting him on the back.

Leon looked up and smiled at him. Po could always make him feel better. Then Po got up from the bed.

"I better get done packing. Don't want Shifu yelling at me for being late!" Po said with a laugh. Leon laughed as well.

"See ya out front, Leon!" Po said.

Then he turned and walked out of the room. Leon heaved a deep sigh and rose to his feet. He walked over and picked up a sword belt. He fastened it, tightly around his waist, and then picked up a beautiful sword.

It was light blue and had patterns like the wind on it. Shadow had given it to him for a wedding present.

He had gotten very good at using it, while he was doing Kung Fu. He looked at it, one last time and then holstered it. He grabbed a few more thing's, threw them into a black and white bag, threw it up on his shoulder, then turned and walked out the door.

He walked to Silver and Blaze's room. And found that they were packing as well.

"And just where do you two think _you're_ going?"" Leon asked.

"We're going with you!" Blaze said.

She and Silver stopped packing, and walked over to their father. They both had worried expressions on their faces.

"We want to help save mama, too!" Silver protested.

Leon sighed. "I don't think that's a good idea, kids. I don't want you to get hurt!" Leon told them.

"We're coming with you. And that's, that!" Silver said, crossing his arm's.

Leon shook his head. Silver really _was_ just like Shadow.

"Fine. You can come!" he said, defeated.

"Yes! We get to help save mama!" Blaze said, jumping up and down.

"_But. _I want you to stay close to us, understand?" Leon asked.

They both nodded their head's happily.

"Alright. Get done packing. We'll be leaving soon!" Leon said.

They smiled, then dashed back over to their beds, where their bags were and got back to their packing. Leon walked out of their room and left them to get done with their packing. He walked through the hall's, when he bumped into Shakira.

"Oh I'm sorry!" she said, backing up.

"No, no. It was my fault!" Leon said, smiling at her.

Shakira smiled at him. Then she got an awkward look on her face. "Um, Leon... my children and I would like to come with you, to help save your wife!" Shakira said.

Leon stared at her, in surprise. "We couldn't ask that!" Leon protested.

"We want to. Shadow and I are a lot alike. I want to help. And my children like her very much. They want to help as well!" Shakira said.

Leon smiled. "Thank you!" Leon said quietly.

Shakira smiled and placed a paw on his shoulder. "It will be alright. We'll get her back!" Shakira said sweetly.

Leon smiled to himself. She was so much like Shadow.

Leon nodded, then left her to pack. He walked out of the Student Barracks and then walked out to the lake.

He looked around. He had married Shadow here. It was a special place to him and Shadow.

He walked over to a flat rock and sat down on it. He just sat there. He wasn't sure if he should feel happy that they were going to get her back. Sad that she was gone. Or worried about what Tanis might do to her.

All of these feeling's, swirled around inside him. But nothing happened. Nothing came: no joy; no fear; no tear's.

Soon, Master Shifu came looking for him.

"Leon? Are you here?" he called out.

He knew that Leon and Shadow both, came here when they were upset. He looked around for him.

"I'm right here, Master Shifu!" Leon said, getting up from the rock he was sitting on.

"Ah! There you are. Are you ready to go?" Shifu asked.

Leon sighed and nodded his head. "I'll always be ready, when it comes to my family!" he said.

Shifu smiled at him. "Then let us be off!" he said, turning back and walking towards the Jade Palace.

Leon quickly fell into step with him. When they got back to the Jade Palace. They saw everybody waiting for them. Leon smiled.

'_We will find Shadow; we will bring her home; and Tanis. _Will_. Pay!' _Leon thought as he smiled at his friends and family.

Then they all turned and walked down the staircase and they set off in search of Shadow...

**DO. **_**NOT**_**. SAY. IT! I KNOW it's sad, OK? I can't help it. I know how to write sad chapters! It's just what I'm good with! So yeah. Please review and check back soon for more!**


	13. Searching for Shadow

**Ok, I'm telling ya. I am on a ROLL tonight! So just, enjoy the chapter and, yeah! Gonna shut up now...**

_Chapter thirteen: Searching for Shadow_

Leon and his friends and family, carefully made their way through the bamboo forest. They were heading for Tanis' old hideout. Hoping he would take up shelter there. And they would find Shadow sooner.

"Daddy... I'm tried!" Blaze said.

She was dragging her feet as she walked, Leon could tell that she was very tried.

"Come here, sweetie!" Leon said, walking over to her.

She smiled up at him and then raised her arm's up. Leon bent down and picked her up and he held her close. She laid her head down on his shoulder and sighed. She hugged him tightly. Leon frowned sadly.

She always did this with Shadow. As did Silver. They both loved her so much. And so did he. They couldn't lose her. They just couldn't.

They continued on their journey. But soon, night fell upon them and they decided to make camp for the night.

"We'll make camp here!" Leon said, setting Blaze back down on the ground.

"I agree. It should be safe here!" Master Shifu said.

The other nodded their heads in agreement. Then they all started to make camp.

Po and Tigress went to fetch wood for a fire. Monkey, Crane and Shakira worked on setting out pallets, for everyone to sleep on. Mantis and Viper, helped Master Shifu gather some food. While Silver, Blaze, Lance and Kira played nearby and Leon kept a good watch on them.

Soon Po and Tigress returned from getting the wood.

They made up a warm fire, cooked their food and sat around on old logs, eating their dinner. Everyone was silent. No one said a single word.

Then Leon decided to do something, that he hadn't done in a long time.

He reached into his bag and pulled out Shadow's flute. He brought it to his lip's and began to play a soothing melody. It was one that Shadow had taught him.

Everyone listened to him play. Then Silver and Blaze got up and sat down on the log, next to him. They both laid their head's down on his leg's and sighed quietly. The music drifted through the forest. When his song came to an end, the other's clapped quietly.

He smiled. That had made him feel a lot better. It had reminded him about what he was fighting for.

He was fighting to get his wife back.

He was fighting for Shadow!

*Deep in the bamboo jungle. Tanis' Hideout. Shadow's Cell*

Shadow slowly forced open her eyes and looked around. She was in a small room, lying on some sort of cot.

She tried to remember what had happened to her.

Then she remembered it all. She remember Tanis attacking her. She remembered what he did to her. She was furious.

She sat up quickly. But quickly laid back down again. For the room had started to spin when she sat up. She buried her head in her paw's. Trying to make the spinning stop.

Then she looked up, when she heard voice's coming from down the hall.

She, ever so slowly, got up and walked over to the door. Then she began to kick on it. Hoping whoever was out there, would be stupid enough to open it. So she could try to escape.

"Quiet in there! Quit making such a racket!" one of the guards yelled to her.

Shadow grinned. "Make me!" she challenged.

The guard looked in at her, through the barred window. He was a very ugly Rhino. He snarled at her and started to unlock the door.

She smiled to herself. But kept on banging. Then the lock on the door, slowly began to release it's hold. She laughed to herself. Now was her chance.

When the guard opened the door. She made a run for it.

She kicked the guard down, then jumped over the him and ran through the hall's.

She ran and didn't look back. But then suddenly, someone grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and lifted her off the floor. She yelped in pain.

"And where do you think you're going?" another Rhino guard demanded.

She stared at him fearfully. She had been caught. There was no escaping now.

"I said. 'Where do you think you're going'?" he yelled.

Shadow cringed. The guard laughed at her and then dragged her back to her cell.

"Look who I caught trying to escape!" the guard laughed, as he threw Shadow back into her cell.

She landed hard, on her stomach. She shook her head, dazed from the hit. The guards looked at each other and nodded there head's.

They both walked into the cell with her. Then one who had grabbed her, grabbed her again. He held her up. While the other guard got ready to punch her. Shadow closed her eyes and got ready for the hit.

"Stop it, _right now_!"

The guards froze. Then looked behind them and so did Shadow.

They saw another guard standing there. But this was a black Wolf guard with dark blue eyes;. He stared at them angrily.

"Put her down! NOW!" he yelled.

The two Rhino guards looked at each other and did as he said. A little to well. They dropped Shadow to the floor, hard.

She backed away from them, as quickly as she could. When she backed herself into the wall, she sat there, trembling in fear.

The guard that had saved her, smiled lightly at her. Then growled at the other two.

"What will Master Tanis say, when I tell him you were trying to hurt his prize?" he asked.

"Just because he left. Doesn't make _you_ the boss, Antonio!" the Rhino, who had grabbed her, said.

'_Tanis is gone?' _Shadow thought happily. But her happiness was short lived.

"You _know _that I'm in charge! Master Tanis had pressing business to attend to. Which mean's _I'm_ the boss!" the Wolf growled.

"Yeah, yeah! Just 'cause some old family member wanted some help!" the Rhino who had unlocked the door, mocked.

"Do _not _speak of Master Tanis like that! I'll have you know. I have as much authority as the Master does!" the Wolf threatened.

Shadow watched them argue, sadly. _'Even though he helped me. He still stand's behind Tanis. Almost as much as Leon did!_' Shadow thought. Fearing that her chances of escaping were dwindling away.

The guards walked out of her cell and locked the door. Then the three walked away. Still arguing with one another.

After they got out of earshot. Shadow curled herself into a tight ball. And she started to cry.

She cried for her family. She cried to be back home. And she cried for her mama and daddy.

*Deep in the bamboo forest. Camp site*

*Later that night*

Silver rolled over, for what seemed like the millionth time. He kept waking up, worried about his mama. And what Tanis was doing to her. He fell back to sleep again. But woke up, ten minutes later, wanting a drink.

He quietly crawled away from his pallet, which was next to Leon and his sister, Blaze.

But when he got up, Shakira heard him and got up as well.

"Are you alright, Silver?" she asked, quietly.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wake you." Silver whispered.

"It's not a problem!" Shakira said, "but why are you up?"  
"I was thirsty! And I haven't been sleeping well. I'm worried about mama!" Silver said.

"Well. I think I can fix your, 'thirsty' problem! And we're going to get your, 'missing your mama' problem fixed soon, too!" Shakira said.

Silver smiled up at here. He liked her. She reminded him of his mama.

Then Shakira walked over to their supplies and pulled out a small glass and one of the canteens. She knew how sleepy poor Silver was. And thought maybe she could help. When he wasn't looking, she quietly slipped some powder into the glass, then poured some water into the glass. Dissolving the powder.

"Here you go sweetie!" she said, handing him the glass of water.

"Thank you miss Shakira!" Silver said, taking it from her.

He drank it and handed it back to her. Then after a moment, he suddenly began to feel sleepy.

He was so tired, that he bent down, and curled up and fell asleep on the ground.

Shakira gently picked him up, smiling that he was asleep and not worrying about his mother, and took him back to his pallet.

She gently laid him down, then walked back to her own. Then Shakira frowned, as she saw a mysterious figure run through the shadow's.

*The next morning*

Everyone woke up to the sun, shining through the trees. But they all had a surprise waiting for them.

"Ok everyone! Let's get- Wait... someone's missing!" Tigress said, worry growing inside her.

"No. NO!" Leon cried out. His nightmare had just spiraled to a whole new level...

**Well, well, well. What has happened? It seems that someone has gone missing! So yeah. Post who you think it is! You know that Tigress and Leon are still there. But **_**who's **_**missing? And for those of you who have already read this. PLEASE! NO TELLING! So yeah. Please don't forget to review and to check back soon for more!**


	14. Missing

**Alright. So I do believe that it's time for a new chapter for this story! Ok, so not NEW, but NEW-ER! So yeah. Enjoy it!**

**Oh and C.S.E.E.S, I know who you are! Let me see. Hi, Kia, Coal, Silver, Ember, Emerald and Saphire! :)**

_Chapter fourteen: Missing_

Leon began to look around the camp site frantically. Fear written deep into his face.

'_No. This can't be happening!' _he thought.

Tigress quickly joined in his search. "How could this have happened?" Tigress asked.

But no one had an answer for her.

Leon hung his head and walked over to a log and sat down. He couldn't believe this was happening.

"This should never have happened. Not now!" Leon said. Tears began to roll down his face. "First Shadow. And now... Silver!"

Leon felt the tears rolling down his face. He couldn't believe he had lost, not only his wife, but his son as well. Everything was spinning out of control, even more so, now.

"Don't worry, Leon. We'll find them!" Viper said.

She slithered over to him and patted his back with her tail. Trying to comfort him in some way. Leon forced a smile at her. But she knew it was fake. They all knew it was fake. Blaze saw how upset her father was. She wanted to do something to comfort him. But she didn't know what to do.

She walked over to Tigress and held on to her pant leg. Tigress looked down and smiled at her.

"Are you alright?" She asked in a quiet voice.

Blaze's lip's began to tremble, as she tried to hold back tears. "I'm worried about mama and Silver" she told Tigress.

Tigress smiled at her. But Blaze just stared at the ground sadly. Tigress understood her worry. First she lost her mother. Now her brother. Who was next?

"It will be alright. I promise!" Tigress said, bending down and pulling her into a hug.

Tigress had grown to love Blaze very much. She was like her, in so many ways. Shadow and Leon were not able to train her, like they could Silver. Because they couldn't use her power. But Tigress could.

Tigress took her on like a little sister. She helped her in her training. And watched as Blaze began to master her power. Everyday, she mastered her powers a little more. And everyday. Their bond grew as well.

"*sigh* I guess all we can do now, is just to keep going..." Leon said, standing up from the log.

"Then let's go. We will find them. Don't worry!" Tigress told her brother.

Everyone nodded and quickly packed up their supplies. Then they continued on their journey. Not only to find Shadow. But to find Silver as well.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle. Tanis' hideout. Shadow's cell*

Shadow sat on the cold, hard floor in her cell. She wondered what was going to happen to her. And what was going to happen to her family. She was very worried about them. She knew that they would be coming after her. She was worried they would be hurt. All because of her.

"Yo, kitty cat! Get up. It's time to eat." one of the, big, ugly Rhino guard's yelled at her. Shadow looked up and growled. She didn't like being bossed around.

She rose to her feet and bared her teeth angrily. "It's about time you brought me something to eat. What were you trying to do? Starve me to death?" Shadow demanded.

"Ha! I wish. Now eat up! Master Tanis will be back soon to check on you. He doesn't seem to think that we're taking good care of you!" the Rhino guard said, setting Shadow's food down on the floor.

Shadow rolled her eye's, annoyed. "Probably because you're _NOT_!" Shadow yelled angrily.

"Watch it, brat! You don't know what we've got planned!" the guard said, an evil grin on his face.

Shadow suddenly became very worried. Something about the tone of his voice made her very afraid. But not for herself. She was afraid for her family.

"Heh! Later Shadow." the guard said.

Then he locked the door and walked away. Shadow sat down on the floor, in front of her food. Her paw's were shaking badly. So she tried to calm herself down. But it was no use. She was to afraid for her family.

She stared at the bowl of what they called, 'food'. She didn't feel like eating. She didn't feel like doing anything, but curling up into a ball and crying. But she knew that she had to stay strong, so she tried to eat some of the 'food'.

'_Might as well keep up my strength!' _she thought, as she picked up a hard roll and began to chew on it.

She sat there, eating her food, deep in thought. When all of a sudden, she heard a soft voice. It was so close. Yet it sounded so far away.

"Shadow..."

Shadow quickly spun around, when she heard her name being called. But no one was there. She perked her ear up high. Trying to find where the voice was coming from.

"Shadow, listen to me!"

There it was again! Where was it coming from? And who did it belong to?

"Shadow. Trouble is coming. You must be ready for anything!"

Shadow spun around and around. She looked all over her cell, trying to find where the voice was coming from.

Then it suddenly hit her. She know who the voice belonged to. Someone she thought she would never see again.

"Mama? Mama, where are you?" Shadow cried out.

Then a White Tiger appeared in front of her. She had soft, caring blue eyes. A kind smile and a beautiful pattern upon her forehead. And she spoke in a slight accent.

"Oh, Shadow. My wonderful little girl... look how much you've grown!" her mother said, placing a paw on Shadow's cheek, caringly.

Shadow felt hot tear's running down her face. "I've missed you so much, mama!" she said, through her tear's.

Her mother smiled and pulled Shadow close to her, in a tight hug. "As have I, my precious daughter! Now you must listen to me. Danger is closing in on you. You must always be strong. Never be selfish!" her mother said, pulling away and looking her daughter in the eye.

"What do you mean? What danger?" Shadow asked, fearfully.

"Shadow. Never be selfish. Always have an open heart. No matter what happens. Be true to yourself! Or suffer the consequences." her mother said, as she started to fade away.

"NO! MAMA, PLEASE DON'T GO!" Shadow cried. Tear's rolled down her face in stream's.

"I love you, Shadow. My love for you will never change. Remember... be true to yourself! Never forget that. Good bye. My wonderful daughter!" her mother said.

Then she disappeared from sight.

"NO! PLEASE, DON'T LEAVE ME! _PLEASE_!" Shadow cried, falling down to her knee's.

But there was nothing she could do. Her mother was gone. And she could not bring her back. She didn't know what to do now. So she cried.

Shadow cried and cried. She cried until she had no more tear's left. But still her heart was broken.

And nothing could ever fix that...

**Ok. Please. DO. NOT. SAY. IT! I KNOW that it's sad, ok? I know. So yeah. That was the next chapter and I hope you all liked it! SO yeah. Next chapter coming soon and please don't forget to, **_**REVIEW!**_


	15. New friend's

**Alright all! Time for the next chapter! Sorry about the wait. I was at my friends house! So yeah. And also, quick note. I do not own the characters, Azure and Ajani. They both belongs to the TOTALLY amazing, TigerDragonYinYang. I SO suggest checking out her amazing stories! But she sometimes changes her name, so if you can't find her. Ask me and I'll find her and tell you where she is. So yeah. Enjoy!**

_Chapter fifteen: New friend's_

*Deep in the bamboo jungle*

Leon led the way, as he and his family and friends, continued on. To not only find, his wife. But to find his son as well.

"It's starting to get late. Maybe we should make camp!" Po said.

They all nodded their heads sadly and worked on setting up camp. They decided to post a guard all night. So that what happened the night before would not happen again.

Shakira offered to take first lookout. They started to set up the rest of the night's lookouts, when Lance and Kira spoke up.

"We can help mama keep watch!" Kira said.

The other's weren't to sure. Things were getting dangerous and they were just young cubs.

"We can do it!" Lance said. He knew they weren't sure about them helping.

After a moment of thought, the other's agreed.

"Alright. If you're sure!" Shifu said.

They both nodded their heads happily. And then joined their mother with the watch. Finally, everyone fell asleep. Blaze slept right next to Leon. She was afraid for her family.

All day long she had been very quiet. She had hung very close to Leon. Tigress thought that she was afraid that she would lose Leon as well. Tigress felt bad for her. She was going through so much at a young age. But at least she was older then she and Shadow had been when they lost their parents.

*Later that night*

One lone figure, crept through the shadow's, cast by the long bamboo stalks.

It crept closer to the camp. Then it walked up behind Shakira, and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned around. She stared at the figure closely.

"Hmm... you must be Ajani. Tanis' brother. The Wolf from the other night, told me you would be coming soon!" Shakira said.

The figure smiled, very evilly. He was a Lion. Fairly tall, with golden tan fur, a dark brown mane, and bright blue eyes.

"At your service, madam!" Ajani said, bowing politely.

Shakira shook her head. Why was she doing this?

"Lance. Kira. Come along! It's time to get going." Shakira said quietly.

Her children walked up to her and they stared up at the Lion before them.

"Are you daddy's brother?" Kira asked.

Ajani nodded his head. "That I am! It's very nice to meet you two." he said.

Shakira rolled her eyes, then bent down and quickly made mark's in the dirt. Ajani watched her, curiously.

"What _are _you doing? Playing in the dirt?" he asked.

She sighed. "I'm making it look like there was a struggle. That way they think we were captured and didn't go of our own free will!" Shakira explained.

Ajani nodded his head. She was smarter then she looked. Then they all quietly snuck away from the camp.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle. Tanis' hideout. Shadow's cell*

Shadow sat in the corner of her cell. She had stopped crying, but was still shaking badly. She could feel a bad case of her sickness coming on. Even though Leon and the others had been able to save her life. She never had been fully cured of her sickness and it still would give her fits, sometimes.

She reached up and wiped the tears off her face. She still couldn't believe she had seen her mother. But was that just a dream? An allusion? A trick, played by her eyes?

Then Shadow looked up, when she heard her cell door being unlocked.

She watched as the door flew open and a figure was thrown inside the cell. Shadow quickly got to her feet. She watched as the two Rhino guards smiled and walked away, locking the door behind them.

The figure that had been thrown in, jumped up and ran over to the door.

"Let me out, _right now!_"

Shadow watched as the figure kicked on the door angrily. Then stormed away from it.

Shadow looked and could see the figure was a Cheetah. And by it's voice, a female. Then the Cheetah looked up at her.

"Who are you?" she asked

Shadow smiled sweetly at her. "My name is, Shadow. Who are you?" Shadow asked.

The Cheetah huffed and turned away from her. "My names is, Azure."

Shadow watched her, then asked. "Why are you here, Azure?"

Azure stopped and turned to her. Shadow could see tears in her eyes.

"I was brought here, because of my dad. Well, it's a lot more complicated then that, but that's my best explanation of it all!" she said.

Shadow felt bad for her. She looked closer and could see that she had been hurt fairly badly. She felt very angry. And she wasn't going to let, anyone hurt her anymore. Not if she could help it.

Then Azure rose to her feet and began to pace the floor. Shadow watched her. She knew she should sit down for a while and rest.

"Azure. You really should rest! It's not good for you to be up. Not in your condition!" Shadow said.

"I don't care." Azure said, stubbornly.

"But sweetie. Tanis hurt you badly. You really _should _rest!" Shadow said, again.

She was very worried about the young Cheetah. Tanis had hurt her badly. She had three good sized bumps on the back of her head.

"I will _not_ rest. I _have_ to save my father!" she said.

Shadow understood how worried and upset she was. "I know, but to do that; you need to rest!" Shadow explained gently.

Azure stopped, sighed, nodded her head and sat down on her cot. Shadow walked over and sat down next to her.

"So, what does Tanis want _you _for?" Shadow asked.

"Pfft. Plans to 'drain my powers', as he says, by finding these 'Power Drain Cuffs'. Or whatever they are." Azure said.

"Powers?" Shadow asked curiously.

"Yeah. So? I prefer to use my claws and fists over powers." Azure growled angrily.

"I have powers too. Water powers." Shadow said with a smile.

Azure looked over at her in curiosity. "I have Lightning, Ice, Earth, Fire, Water, and Wind powers. Pretty much every elemental power." she explained.

"Well. Maybe if we work together. We can get out of here! Well... at least you can..." Shadow said sadly.

Azure looked over at her funny. "W-what do you mean?" she asked.

"I don't know _what's_ wrong. But I'm not myself. I'm tired and I can't control my Water power's like I always have. I don't know what it is..." Shadow explained.

Shadow could see that Azure was worried about her. Shadow was afraid of what could be keeping her from feeling well. She was afraid it was her sickness.

Shadow and Azure then talked for a little bit longer. They asked things about each other and slowly got to know each other. Then they suddenly heard talking. It sounded like Tanis and someone Shadow didn't know. She also thought she heard a female voice. They could hear them talking, out in the hallway.

"Thank you for bringing my wife here, Ajani! Now... here's the plan. You distract the guards and keep them away from the cell that holds the Power Drain Cuffs." Tanis said.

"And then once you get the cuffs, I will get them away from the exit and then you can sneak out!" Ajani said evilly.

"Alright then. Let's go!" Tanis said.

"But what about, Azure and _your _captive?" Ajani asked.

"I can keep an eye on them!" the female voice said.

Shadow thought she recognized the voice. But she wasn't sure.

"Alright then, my dear. They're all your's. Come Ajani. Let us go! Oh wait! I have something that I need to deal with first." Tanis said. Then they heard him walk off.

Shadow started to panic a bit. She had heard of Power Drain Cuffs before. They could be _very_ dangerous.

"There probably not for you, so don't worry about it!" Azure said, suddenly.

She had seen the look on Shadow's face and knew that she was nervous. Then they sat there. Not knowing what to do. They were both nervous about what would happen to them and they were worried for their families too.

Then the two Rhino guard's, that had been mean to Shadow and a black Wolf, walked into the cell. Both, Shadow and Azure looked up and growled angrily.

"Get the spotted one!" the Wolf growled.

The two Rhino guards grinned evilly and then they reached for Azure. But that's when Shadow had, had enough. She jumped up off the cot and unleashed her claw's. She swung her arm around as fast as she could and ran her claws along the closest guard's face. The Rhino fell back, screaming in pain.

Shadow stepped forward and stood in front of Azure and growled. "You leave her _alone_! She's been though _enough_ as it is!" Shadow yelled at the guards. They all stared at her angrily.

"You'll pay for that, brat!" the guard she had clawed said.

The two other guard's that had come with him, gathered around Shadow. They pushed her towards the center of the room. She stumbled a bit, then found her balance. She growled and bared her teeth at them in anger.

Then the Wolf pushed her again. She turned and started to kick him, when one of the Rhino's grabbed her tail and pulled her backwards. She growled and turned to punch him. But the other Rhino kicked her to the ground.

Then they gathered around her and beat her. They beat her very badly.

Azure jumped up and tried to stop them. But they wouldn't let her in. They just pushed her back and kept her away. After another painful ten minutes, they stopped and moved away from Shadow.

She was lying on the ground, shaking badly. She was bruised everywhere and she had her eyes closed tight.

"That will teach you to mess with _me_, ya no good, brat!" the guard said evilly.

Shadow moaned and slowly opened her eyes. She hurt so much. Azure tried to get to her again, but the Wolf growled and stepped towards Shadow. His paw raised, just above her head. He would hit her again and Azure knew it. She slowly backed away from him.

Then all of a sudden, a scream rang out from down the hall. It sounded like Tanis. And he sounded like he had been hurt.

Then a small blur of black and white came running into the cell.

"_MAMA_!" the blur cried out, worried.

"S-Silver...?" Shadow asked slowly, raising her head from the ground, slightly.

Silver ran over to his mother's side. He knelt down and hugged her close. Then Tanis stormed in. He was holding his paw and it looked like it was bleeding slightly. He looked at Silver and growled at him.

"You! You little brat! You _bit_ me!" Tanis yelled angrily.

Silver let go of Shadow and stood up. He looked up at Tanis, angrily. "You hurt my mama!" Silver growled.

Tanis glared at him. Then stopped and slowly smiled at him.

"You would make a fine young warrior. Want to join my army?" Tanis asked sweetly.

Silver's stare and angry expression told him no.

"Fine! Then if you'll stand aside and let me at your mother. I'll let you go free!" Tanis said.

Shadow looked up when she heard him say that.

"Silver... get out of here..." she said, trying to hold back tear's.

"Do we have a deal?" Tanis asked, an evil smirk upon his face.

"NEVER! I'll _NEVER_ let you hurt my mama!" Silver yelled at him.

Tanis chuckled. "You _really _would make a nice warrior. Enjoy your mother while you can!" Tanis said.

Then he turned and walked away.

"Wait! What do mean? What are you talking about?" Silver asked.

He suddenly became very worried about his mother and what Tanis had planned for her. Tanis stopped and smiled at him.

"You'll see... and as for you!" Tanis growled, pointing to Azure. "I'll be back soon to deal with you!"

Then he and the guard's walked out of the cell and left them be. Azure and Silver ran over and helped Shadow over to her cot. Shadow was so happy to see Silver. But was also extremely worried about her family.

"Silver... how did you get here?" Shadow asked weakly.

Silver just shook his head. "Rest mama. We'll have time to talk!" he said.

Shadow smiled at her son. "I love you, sweetie..." she said.

Silver smiled. "I love you too, mama!" Silver said. He crawled up on the bed and hugged her gently.

Then he crawled down and sat on the floor. Azure sat down next to him and they both watched Shadow

Shadow closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep. She soon was able to fall asleep. But not before she heard Silver and Azure introducing themselves to each other...

**Ok. So there's the next chapter! Sorry again about the wait and all. I hope you all liked it and be sure to check back soon for more! And please don't forget to,**_** REVIEW!**_


	16. Goodbye

**Alright here is the next chapter! It's REALLLLLLLLLLY long. And as you can see by it's chapter title. Something is going to happen. So yeah, you are WARNED!**

_Chapter sixteen: Goodbye..._

*Later that night. Weapons storage area, Chor Ghom Prison*

"Alright. You know what to do, Ajani." Tanis whispered to his brother.

They were both crouched down in some bushes, that were near the front entrance to Chor Ghom Prison.

"You bet I know what to do. Those cuffs and Azure powers will be _mine!_" Ajani whispered fiercely.

Tanis smiled at his brother. He knew that he would stop at nothing, to get what he wanted. As long as he didn't know what he was _really _planning. Tanis had many tricks up his sleeve. And he also had more captives then Shadow and her son. Some he might even be. Related to. Possibly even his... sister.

"Alright, get going, Ajani!" Tanis growled quietly.

Ajani quickly nodded his head and left his hiding place in the bushes. He quietly crept towards the guards, while Tanis snuck around to the opposite side of the large building. Tanis dug his claws into the side of the building and pulled himself up. Soon, he had climbed up to one of the lower windows. He dug his back feet claws into the rocks and opened the window as quietly as he could.

Tanis pulled himself into the window, then silently dropped to the floor. He crept over to the door and put his ear to it. He could hear guards running past, yelling about a brake in.

'_Right on time, Ajani!' _Tanis thought.

Then when he felt all the guards had past by. He slowly opened the door and walked out. He looked down each of the halls, then took off running down one of them. He continued to search for the cuffs, until a Rhino guard stepped in his way.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the one of got away!" the guard mocked.

Tanis bared his teeth and growled at him. He was the lead Rhino. The one that _really _hated him. Tanis ducked down and kicked his legsout from under him. The Rhino fell back, hard. Tanis took this chance, to run past him and down the hall.

While he was doing that, Ajani took care of the guards that were trying to stop him from braking in. Just as he was supposed to do. He kicked, punched and did anything he had to, to keep the guards busy.

He looked up, when he saw Tanis run past, across the back. Tanis then ran up to a door and jumped in the air and kicked it down. Then he ran inside. Ajani smiled to himself. Tanis had found the Power Drain Cuffs.

Tanis ran into the room and pulled to a halt. He grinned evilly. For there, setting on a pedestal was the Power Drain Cuffs. He walked over to them and snatched them off there pedestal. He held them and smiled. Then he took off out the door.

He quickly ran to help Ajani with his fight. When the guards realized what was happening, it was to late. Tanis leapt up into the air and attacked them all, with a lightening attack.

Those who weren't knock unconscious, were trapped in a lightening dome. They tried to fight their way out, while Tanis and Ajani escaped out into the dark night. Taking the Power Drain Cuffs with them.

*The next morning*

Everyone slowly woke up again, to the sun coming through the trees. But what they found, shocked and surprised them. Shakira, Lance and Kira were gone.

"It looks like they put up a good fight!" Tigress commented.

They all stood around the marks in the dirt, that Shakira had made the night before.

"This is ridiculous!" Po said.

"How could we have let this happen?" Leon asked.

But unfortunately, nobody knew.

"D-do you think their alright, daddy?" Blaze asked, pulling on Leon's pant leg.

He looked down at her and smiled. "I'm sure their alright. Don't worry! We'll find them. All of them." Leon said.

Then he bent down and picked her up. He held her close and hugged her tight.

"Well, we'd be best to get a move on! While the day is still new." Master Shifu said.

They all nodded their head's sadly. Still afraid for their friends. And then they continued on their journey.

*Deep in the bamboo forest. Tanis' hideout. Shadow, Silver and Azure cell*

Silver and Azure both sat on the floor, watching each other. They weren't sure what to say. Then Azure broke the silence.

"So. Shadow is your mama?" she asked.

Silver grinned big. "Yeah! She's the best mama, _ever!_ She does so much for me and my sister and my daddy. What about you? Where are your parents?" he asked.

Azure sighed and turned away from him. "Well. My mama died when I was a little younger. My daddy and I tried to help her, but no one could. After she died, my dad was just to sad, to do anything. He would just sit and stare at the wall. He would only sorta talk to me and wouldn't really talk to anyone else. Well, there had been some mean people in my village. Ajani being one of them. And they never liked me or my dad. So well. I'm not really sure what happened, but I think Ajani somehow captured my dad, then I was kidnapped by Tanis. And I ended up here. My dad is somewhere here, but I'm not sure where." Azure explained.

Silver cocked his head. He watched Azure, as she wiped her face, with the back of her paw. He was almost sure that she was crying. He felt bad for her. Losing your parents like that. He understood how that felt. And it wasn't good.

"Well, I'm sure that we can get your dad back! Mama _always _knows what to do, when things are going wrong!" Silver said, hoping to cheer her up.

"Well. Maybe. But all I know is, I'm going to make sure that you and your mama get out of here!" Azure said.

Silver smiled at her. She was very nice. And he had just gotten to know her, and she already wanted to help. He knew she would make a really good friend.

Azure turned and forced a small smile at him. Then she rose to her feet and walked over to the cell door.

Silver watched as Azure tried to pick the lock on their cell door. She growled, when her claws slipped. She stuck them in again, and tried to pick it. But she failed at it, again.

Then she spun around and kicked the wall in frustration. Silver wished that he could do something to help. But he didn't know what he could do.

He looked over, when he heard Shadow wake up. She stayed lying down. But she placed one paw on her head. Silver crawled over to her.

"Are you alright, mama?" Silver asked.

Shadow forced a smile at him. "I'll be alright, Ad'ika." she said.

Just then, the door to their cell flew open and three of the guard's sauntered into their cell. They all grinned evilly.

Shadow quickly sat up and Silver ran over to her and climbed up in her lap. Azure just stood there by the wall and glared at them. Shadow hugged Silver close to her. She wasn't about to let them hurt him. She could feel him snuggling closer to her. She knew he was scared.

The guard's smiled and pointed at Azure. "Master Tanis is back. And he want's to see you. Right now!" the guard, which Shadow clawed, yelled. An evil grin plastered on his face.

Shadow wanted to help in some way. To keep them from taking her and hurting her. But she was still very weak.

Silver wanted to help as well. But he didn't know what to do. He was scared. For both Azure and his mama.

"HA! Like I'm gonna go with you!" Azure growled at the guards.

The guards smiled even more at that.

"Either you go. Or we take them!" the Wolf guard said, pointing towards Shadow and Silver.

Silver snuggled deeper into Shadow's fur. He felt tears trying to come. He fought them as best he could. Shadow held Silver tightly, as he buried his face into her fur, and she growled and bared her teeth. She was not about to let them hurt her son.

Azure quickly walked over and stood in front of them. "I'll go. But only if you promise not to hurt them!" Azure said.

The guards smiled and then the other Rhino walked over and quickly cuffed her. Shadow set Silver down on the bed and got to her feet.

"Now hold on! I'm the one Tanis want's. Take me instead!" she said.

But Azure quickly shook her head. "No Shadow. You need to stay here and take care of Silver!" Azure said.

Shadow stared at her, then nodded her head sadly. Then she slowly backed away. Azure would _not_ let Tanis hurt Shadow and Silver anymore then he already had. Shadow had stood up for her. Something no one else had ever done for her. She would not let them down.

She walked forward and the guards surrounded her. They quickly and quietly led her out. Then all was quiet.

Shadow turned and walked back to her cot. She sat down and Silver hugged her tight. He was so scared. And Shadow knew it.

Shadow held him close and rocked him back and forth. She could feel tears rolling down her face. She was worried about what Tanis would do to Azure. And she was worried about her family.

*Later that day*

Shadow still sat on her cot, holding Silver in her arms. She continued to rock him back and forth. For a while, he slept peacefully in her arms. Laying his head, against her chest. He purred softly in his sleep. She smiled at him. She cared so much for her family. She couldn't bare for something to happen to them.

Then she looked up and growled, when Tanis appeared at the door. Silver woke up, to the sound of his mothers growls.

"Hello!" Tanis said cheerfully.

Shadow just glared at him. "Where's Azure?" Shadow demanded.

Tanis shook his head. "No need to worry about her she's just getting ready for some... testing! No, it's you and your son that you should worry about right now!" Tanis said.

Shadow gently pushed Silver behind her. "Don't even think about it, Tanis!" Shadow growled.

Tanis just smiled at her. "I have a deal for you! We _both _know why you're having problems controlling your power's. It's because of your sickness! But I havefound a way to heal you. But it has a price. A _high _price. For me to heal you. Your son must go away; forever!" Tanis said.

Shadow sat there, in front of her son, fearing greatly for his life. She rose to her feet and glared at Tanis angrily.

"Never! I'd rather be sick and without power's, then to lose Silver!" Shadow growled.

"I thought you might see it that way. And that is why I'm leaving the choice up to your son!" Tanis said evilly.

Then he snapped his fingers and a small secret door, opened up on the right side of the doorway. Black scorpions came filing into the room. Hundreds of them.

They quickly surrounded Shadow. Forcing her to back herself into the wall. There was no escape for her, they had her surrounded from all sides. Shadow knew that this was the end for her. But just then, Silver jumped over them and landed next to Shadow.

"You stay away from my mama!" he cried.

Shadow gasped, as he hit the ground and rolled to the side, grabbing a handful of dirt. He threw it at the scorpions, blinding them. Then he quickly kicked as many of them away, as he could. Then he grabbed one, being careful of it's tail and threw it at the others. Knocking some back. But they still continued forward. Unfazed but his futile attempts to stop them.

Silver fought hard. But it wasn't nearly enough. Soon the scorpions were on him. And with one swift strike of the poisonous stingers. The scorpions stung him. And the fight was over.

"_NOOO!_" Shadow cried, as she watched her son, slowly fall to his knee's.

Silver's eyes were wide, and he held his right arm tightly, where the scorpions had stung him. The pain was excruciating. He trembled, as he slowly fell forward.

Then the scorpions slowly filed out, and Shadow ran to her son's side. She gently picked him up, into her arms and held him close to her. She slowly rocked him back and forth. Tears falling freely through her fur. Silver then slowly forced his eyes open. He smiled weakly at her.

Shadow could see the tremendous pain in his eyes. She looked down at his arm, where the scorpions had stung him. His arm was swelled slightly and was very red. She felt her tears coming faster. How could she have let this happen?

"I-I did it mama... I-I protected you!" Silver said weakly.

He smiled up at her, and his trembling slowly began to worsen.

"I know you did, sweetie. I know!" Shadow said. She tried to smile through her tear's, but found it almost impossible.

"I-I love you... so much, m-mama!" Silver said.

He still trembled badly and his eyes were slowly beginning to close.

"No, Silver! Don't you leave me! You hear? You've gotta stay here with me!" Shadow sobbed. Her tear's coming faster and harder.

"I c-couldn't let them... hurt you, mama. I-I'm sorry..." Silver whispered through trembling lips.

"No, no, no sweetie. You did wonderful! Just please don't go!" Shadow cried.

"I-I'll always love you... mama..." Silver said, as he gently placed his on her cheek and wiped away a tear.

Then with those final words, he slowly closed his eyes and his paw slowly dropped from her tear stained face, down to his lap. And he laid there, still in her arms.

Shadow stared down at his calm, peaceful face, as tears streamed down her face and fell to the floor. She prayed that this was all a dream. That she would wake up at any moment now. But it was real. And Silver was gone from her life.

"Because your son is dead. Your sickness shall be cured!" Tanis said.

Then he turned away from the cell door and quietly walked away. Then a lone blue scorpion came out from the left side of the door. It walked over to the crying tigress and stung Shadow on the top of her right paw.

But she didn't feel it. She didn't feel anything at all. All she could feel, was her heart braking into a million piece's.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She broke down and sobbed uncontrollably. She cried and she screamed in pure pain. A pain she knew all to well. The pain of losing someone she had loved, with all her heart. And the pain that she was helpless to do anything to stop it.

"_NO! NO SILVER, NO!_" she screamed at the top of her lung's.

She buried her face, deep into Silver's fur. She held him close to her. She refused to let him go. He had given his life for her.

She would never let him go. Not after what he gave to her...

**Ok, now that I'm crying my eyes out, I'm gonna leave. Let me know what you all thought and... I'M SO SORRY, OK? WAHHHHHHHHHH!**


	17. The Truth Come

**Whoo! Got another chapter all ready to go! I hope you all like it. And my goodness, it's yet another LOOOOOOOOOONG one! So yeah, hope you all enjoy it!**

_Chapter seventeen: The Truth Come's Out_

*Deep in the bamboo forest*

The group of Masters, slowly made their way through the forest. They were all still shook up about losing Shakira, Lance and Kira. None of them had slept well that night, for fear of losing someone else.

"Daddy. I miss mama and Silver!" Blaze said quietly.

Leon stopped and bent down beside her. "I know you do, sweetie. I miss them too. Be we have to keep going! We'll get them back. Just wait and see!" Leon said.

Though inside, he was still very worried. He opened his arms and Blaze ran up to him and hugged him close. Then after a moment, they continued on. They walked on, for a few more hours, in complete silence. None of them knew what to say.

Then they stopped, when Tanis' old lair came into view. They all quietly crept up on it. They hid in some bushes, just for safety sake. Leon slowly poked his head out. To get a better look around. There were a few guard's. But they weren't enough to stop them. Then Leon saw their point on entry. The air vent.

'_Hmph! It seems that Tanis doesn't even care to fix the air vent. It's still open, from when we broke in, over ten years ago! Oh well. This give's us the advantage!' _Leon thought, happily.

Then he pulled his head back down. He quickly told the others about the few guard's and the air vent. They quickly came up with a plan. 'Quickly' being the key word.

They slowly and quietly made their way towards the air vent. Leon and the others, crawled up inside it and Leon led the way through. He had the strangest feeling. A feeling he couldn't shake. Something was wrong. And he needed to get to his family. Before Tanis did something to them.

But what was unknown to Leon and the rest of the Jade Palace residents. Was that Tanis had already done something. Something that no one would have seen coming.

He did something that not even his own wife, Shakira could believe.

*Inside Tanis' hideout*

Shakira marched down one of the hall's, of Tanis' hideout. She was heading towards Tanis' bedroom.

She had just heard about what had happened to Silver. And she was furious! She marched up to his door and banged loudly on it. After a moment, Tanis came to the door. His face; expressionless.

"Tanis! Tell me it's a lie!" Shakira pleaded to her husband.

Tanis just stared blankly at her. "What ever do you mean, my dear?" Tanis asked.

Shakira pushed past him and walked into his room. Then she began to pace the floor.

"You know what I mean! Your brother said you... killed Shadow's son! Please tell me he's lying!" Shakira said.

Shakira was near to tear's. She could never think of Tanis doing such a horrible thing. Silver had done nothing to him. Tanis _couldn't_ have killed him. Could he?

Tanis simply smiled at her. Shakira stared at him in pure shock.

"So it's true? You killed him? Tanis, how could you? You never said that you would do something so awful! You just said we'd scare them! Not hurt them!" Shakira yelled at him.

Tanis turned to face her. His face only showed pride, in what he had done. "You're starting to sound like that, pathetic Shadow! I'm surprised with you, my love." Tanis said. His voice; cold and uncaring.

Shakira just shook her head. "You're not the man I married, so long ago. You've changed. And not for the better!" Shakira said angrily.

Then she pushed past him and walked out the door. She couldn't believe he did such a thing. The Tanis she had known, never would have done this. What had happened to her husband and father of her children?

Then she heard something that hurt her deeply.

_"You stay away from him!"_

Shakira quickly ran towards the scream. And she found that some of Tanis' guard's were trying to take Silver's body from Shadow.

"GUARDS!" Shakira yelled to them, from outside the cell.

The two Rhino guards left Shadow and walked out, locking the door behind them.

"What do you want?" one of them asked angrily.

"Leave her be. She's hurting!" Shakira told them.

They looked at each other and laughed. But then they walked away, still laughing and making jokes about Shadow. Shakira shook her head sadly, then walked up to the barred window in the door.

She looked in and saw Shadow cradling Silver gently in her arms. She bent down and rubbed her forehead against his. Even though he was gone. She still cared so much for him.

"I'm so sorry, Shadow!" Shakira said quietly.

Shadow quickly looked up at her. The color gone from her face. She stared at Shakira for a moment, then shook her head sadly.

Shakira knew what she was thinking. How could she? Shadow had thought she was her friend. Shakira unlocked the door and walked in. Shadow stared at her and quickly backed away from her.

"Shadow. Please listen to me! I had no idea that Tanis would do this!" Shakira said.

Shadow just stared at her. "How do you know him?" Shadow asked.

Her voice was strained. As if she was forcing the word's out.

"He's my husband!" Shakira said. Her voice betrayed sadness.

"Then your children, are his?" Shadow asked.

"Yes. Please understand. I had no idea that these were his intentions!" Shakira said.

She never had thought that braking Tanis out of jail was a good idea. Now she _knew_ it wasn't. She knew what she had to do. She had to try to make thing's right.

"What can I do to help you?" Shakira asked.

Shadow looked at her with renewed hope. "I know that my family will be coming for me. Help them, and help Azure. Tanis has her father somewhere. Help her get him out of here. That's how you can help me! But make sure that you leave Tanis for me. He's stepped over the line. And I'm not going to let him get away with this!" Shadow said, as she looked down at Silver sadly.

Shakira nodded her head. "I'll do what I can! And I'll keep the guards from bothering you anymore. I'm so sorry, Shadow. I would have stopped him if I knew!" Shakira said.

Shadow smiled a little, as tears slowly rolled down her face. "I know!" she said quietly.

Shakira smiled gently at her, then rose to her feet and left the cell.

'_I will _not_ let Shadow down. Not again!' _Shakira thought, as she walked through the hideout to find her children and tell them what had happened.

And just _what _they were going to do about it.

*Azure's cell*

Azure sat inside the small cell she had been taken to. She'd been in here for hours. She wasn't sure what was going to happen next. But she could only hope that Shadow and Silver were alright.

She looked up and growled, when Ajani came to the door. He smiled evilly at her. Then unlocked the door and walked in.

"Hello, Azure. So good to see you again!" he said, through bared fangs.

Azure growled and spat, "Yeah right. What do you want, Ajani?"

Ajani simply smiled at her. "My brother Tanis want's to see you!" he said.

Azure bared her teeth in anger, when the two Rhino guards, who had beaten Shadow, walked in. They walked over to her and poked her in the back with their spears. Azure growled at them, then walked forward. Ajani turned and led the way to Tanis throne room.

He walked in, then walked up a small flight of stairs and stood proudly beside Tanis. Azure stopped, when the guards ordered her to. She stared up angrily at Tanis and Ajani.

"Well, if it isn't Azure. The one who is said to have control over _all _the elements. Why, I do believe it's time we found out if that is true!" Tanis said, an evil grin on his face.

Then he rose from his feet and held out a pair of cuffs. Azure eyed him angrily. He sauntered up to her and held out the cuffs.

"Now be a good girl and put these on!" Ajani said, from Tanis' throne.

Azure turned to him and growled low. Then one of the Rhino guards walked up and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck. Azure yelped in pain. Then Tanis grabbed her wrists roughly and slapped the cuffs on.

Azure's eyes widened, as she felt the cuffs slowly beginning to drain her power. The guard released his hold on her and she dropped down to her knees. Tanis watched her happily. Soon, hers, Shadow's and her families powers would be his.

'_No. I can't let him take my powers!' _Azure thought.

She could feel her powers, slowly leaving her and being sucked into the cuffs. She looked down at the cuffs and realized something.

'_These things. They're really fragile! I bet I can brake them.' _Azure thought.

Then an idea came to Azure's mind. She looked up and saw Tanis walk away from her and back to his throne. She knew that this was her only chance. She raised her arms up above her head and waited for a moment.

Tanis watched her, then his eyes widened.

"_NO_!" he yelled.

That's when Azure made her move. She brought the cuffs down, as hard as she could to the floor. The moment they made impact, they shattered to pieces. And the moment they did that, Azure felt her powers returning to her. She smiled and looked up at Tanis and Ajani.

They both stared at her. Ajani had a look of shock. And Tanis had a look of anger.

"How _could_ you?" Tanis roared.

Azure just smiled. Then Tanis stormed towards her and grabbed her arm, hauling her to her feet.

"You _will _pay for that!" Tanis growled in her ear.

Azure bared her teeth at him, as he tightened his grip on her arm. He slowly dug his claws into her flesh. Azure winced, but continued to glare at him. Then Ajani stepped forward.

"Wait! I know something that will hurt her, even worse then this." he said.

Tanis stopped and nodded slowly. Then Ajani ran out of the room. Tanis then dragged Azure over towards the wall and quickly chained her to it. Azure pulled on the chains and tried to brake them. But they wouldn't budge. Tanis smiled at her, evilly.

Then they heard a scream, come from down the hall. The a few moments later, Ajani walked back into the room, dragging poor Shadow along with him. Azure could see tears staining her face and she was shaken badly. Ajani dragged Shadow towards Tanis, then threw her towards him.

She landed in a heap, in front of Tanis. She quickly backed away from him, but Ajani stepped behind her and she was trapped between the two of them.

Tanis reached down and grabbed Shadow by the scruff of her neck. She yelped in pain, as he pulled her up. Azure watched with fearful eyes.

"Now then. You will allow me to take your powers, or else she dies!" Tanis growled, as he gently ran his claws, across Shadow's throat.

She whimpered in response to that. She was afraid of what he would do.

"_No_! Don't!" Azure yelled.

Tanis smiled at her, as he grasped Shadow tightly around her throat. She let out a fearful gasp. Ajani watched them and smiled evilly at Azure.

Azure watched them fearfully. She couldn't let Tanis hurt Shadow. Not anymore! Then Azure saw a small pair of red, orange eyes, appear in the darkness of the shadows. Then a larger pair, of the same colored eyes, appeared next to the first set.

Then all of a sudden, a South Chinese tigress, leapt from the shadow's and knocked Ajani to the ground. She growled angrily and held him down tightly.

Tanis turned to look at her and muttered under his breath, "Tigress."

Then the rest of the Five, Po, Master Shifu, Leon and Blaze ran out of the shadow's and they all glared at Tanis in hatred. Tanis threw Shadow to the ground and turned to face them.

Either way. This all ended today...

**Alright, there is the next chapter! Look's like we've got a fight scene next! And it seems Shakira isn't to happy with Tanis. But then again, if the love of your life betrayed you. Wouldn't YOU be upset? I know **_**I **_**would be! So yeah, be sure to check back soon for more and please don't forget to, review!**


	18. The raising storm

**Alright! Let's get going with the next chapter and yet again it's a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG one! So yeah, hope you all like it and yeah. ENJOY!**

_Chapter eighteen: The raising storm_

Shadow watched, with hopeful eyes, as her family stood ready to fight. Tigress still had Ajani pinned tightly to the ground. She wasn't _about _to let him up. Tanis growled at the group of heroes.

"ATTACK!" Tanis yelled to his troops.

Then the fight began. Tanis guards ran to fight, while the Master's ran to counter attack. Blaze quickly ran over to Shadow and hugged her close.

"Mama! I was so worried about you! B-but where's Silver?" Blaze asked.

Shadow looked down at her. How could she tell her daughter that her own brother was gone? She held her close. Then she pulled away from her and got to her feet. She glared at Tanis hatefully. Tanis returned her icy glare.

Then they attacked each other.

Blaze just stood there. Not knowing what to do. Then a Wolf guard came at her, his sword held high above his head. She stared at him fearfully. But then, he froze on the spot.

She turned to see Lance, Kira stood right beside him. Her paws aimed at the guard. They were glowing a bright white and ice covered her claws. She was the one who had frozen the Wolf!

Blaze smiled and ran to them. "You're alright!" she cried happily.

Then she hugged her friends close. They returned her hug, then pulled away and looked at her. Sad expressions on their faces.

"Blaze, we're so sorry! We didn't know about what our daddy was planning!" Kira said.

Lance nodded his head in agreement. Blaze looked at her friends, confused.

"You mean... Tanis is your daddy?" Blaze asked.

They nodded their heads. Blaze thought that they almost looked sad about that. Blaze smiled at them.

"Well. You know what he's planning now! So why don't you help me?" Blaze asked.

The two lion cubs looked up at her and smiled, then nodded their head's. Blaze smiled at them. Then the three cubs ran to help the others. Each one using their powers. They were beating almost as many guards, as the Master's were!

Shakira looked around the room. It was pure chaos! But then she saw a young Cheetah. Who was still chained to the wall. She ran over to her and broke her chains. The Cheetah looked at her and smiled. Shakira returned the smile.

"You must be, Azure!" Shakira yelled, over the noise of the fight. The Cheetah nodded her head.

"Come with me! I know where your father is! But we must be careful. He's being well guarded!" she yelled.

Then Shakira and Azure leapt to their feet and took off running down one of the halls, to rescue Azure's father.

Ajani had been able to get out of Tigress' tight hold and ran to help fight with the guards. Then Tigress and Leon quickly changed into their super forms. They were fighting back-to-back, each using their power to their advantage against the guards. The rest of the heroes were fighting just as well.

Then Leon looked over at Shadow and Tanis. He wasn't sure how much longer Shadow would hold out, all on her own. But he had to admit. She was doing pretty good!

Shadow had Tanis pinned to the ground. She looked like she was about to tare his hide off! Then he got one arm free and unleashed his claws and quickly cut her face.

Shadow screamed in pain, as she stumbled backwards. She fell back and hit the floor hard. Tanis slowly stood up and walked over to her and placed his paw in front of her face.

"Time to say good bye to your power's, Shadow!" Tanis said with an evil laugh.

But then, Lance came out of nowhere, pushing Tanis to the side. Tanis rolled to the floor and after a moment, shook his head and growled at Lance angrily.

"How _dare _you do that! I thought you were better then that!" Tanis yelled at his son.

Lance just shook his head sadly and stared at his father. "Funny. I thought the same thing about you!" he said.

Then he ran off to join his sister and Blaze in their fight. Tanis looked up at Shadow, who's face was still bleeding and she had her paw held to it, tightly. She glared at him angrily and Tanis growled at her. She slowly removed her paw from her face and growled right back.

"You took away everything from me! My home; my parents; my life; now _this_?" Shadow exclaimed.

Tanis started to back away from her. She slowly advanced towards him. Growling as loudly as she could.

"Do you _really_ think I'm going to let you get away with what you did? You are going to _pay_ for all the pain you've put me through!" Shadow yelled, as she lunged at him again.

Tanis had thought she was weak. That she would be easy to fight and to defeat. But he was wrong. She may have been weak. But anger and love for her son took care of that.

Shadow pushed Tanis closer and closer to the stair case behind them. Then Tanis smirked at her and flipped over her. Trying to do to her, what she had been planning; knocking the other down the stairs. But Shadow wasn't giving up so easily. She was not about to give up yet.

"This is for my son!" Shadow screamed.

Then she bent low and performed a powerful Round House Kick. Sending Tanis, tumbling down the stairs. With Shadow bounded after him. Tanis landed in a big heap on the floor.

He shook his head, then looked up, when he saw the furious White tigress come into the room. He quickly backed away from her. Shadow looked even scarier with her face, cut and bleeding.

Shadow slowly stood up and towered over Tanis. She was panting heavily and her face was still bleeding.

"Now what do you have to say for yourself?" Shadow demanded.

Tanis stared at her fearfully. He trembled badly, he was weak and hurt. He knew he would never be able to beat Shadow, when she was so angry. He thought it would have weakened her, to kill her son. Not make her stronger.

"Please! Have mercy on me!" Tanis pleaded.

Shadow just stared down at him. She felt her temper raising, at the sight of the coward begging for her mercy. She extended her claws, as far out as they would go. She tensed her muscles and bared her teeth.

"Get out of here!" she growled.

"Wh-what?" Tanis asked, confused.

"I said, 'get out of here'. I want your pathetic face out of my sight, by the time I count to ten. If you're not gone by that time. I'm going to make _sure_ that you regret the day you were born!" Shadow said, her eye's were filled with sorrow and anger.

Tanis nodded his head quickly, as he got to his feet. He slowly backed away from Shadow.

"Th-thank you for your kindness, Shadow! Heh, heh. You're gonna regret it though. See ya soon!" he said, with an evil laugh.

Then he smiled and ran off, through a secret exit in the hideout. Shadow knew that he wouldn't stay away for ever. He would be back for her and the others. But at that moment. She had more pressing matters to deal with.

The hide out slowly began to shake. It was falling down all around her! Shadow gasped, and then raced away, down a hallway. One that led back to her cell. She had to get Silver out of there. He may be gone. But he didn't deserve to be buried under a pile of rocks. Not after what he had done for her.

Shadow soon found her cell. And the door was still open. Silver was lying on the cot, where she had left him when Ajani took her away. She walked over to him and gently placed a paw, lovingly on his face.

Then she picked him up, cradling him gently in her arms and carried him out.

'_Hold on, sweetie! I'm gonna get you outta here!' _she thought as she ran through the halls.

Shadow ran towards the exit, that she had seen Tanis run through. She had to get out of this place, as fast as she could.

There were rocks crumbling down, all around her. She used her own body to protect her sons. She ran and jumped over rocks at quickly as she could. She had to get out. Then she saw it; day light. She smiled and pushed on harder.

She was almost to the door, when a huge pile of rocks came crashing towards her. She stared at them in fear, then bent over to protect Silver from being hurt worse.

Then the rocks hit her, sending her to the floor. Then her world went black.

*Shakira and Azure*

Shakira lead Azure down the halls, as fast as she could. She knew they had to get out of here fast. Pretty soon, they came to a well guarded cell door. There were two Rhino's. A Wolf and a Croc. The two Cats stopped and pushed themselves up against a wall.

"Alright, your father should be in there. Do you want me to help you?" Shakira asked.

Azure shook her head. "No. This is my job. I need to rescue my father on my own." Azure said.

Shakira smiled and nodded her head. Then Azure stepped out from around the wall and walked towards the guards.

"Hey! You're not supposed to be here!" one of the Rhino's yelled.

"And you're not supposed to be that _ugly_!" Azure retorted.

The Rhino growled and ran at her, swinging an ax. Azure quickly side-stepped, when he swung his ax downward. It hit the floor and got stuck in between the stones, from the force he had used. Azure used this moment, to jump up and kick him in the head. He flew backwards, into the Croc guard. He hit the Croc guard and they both tumbled down one of the other hallways.

Then the Wolf guard ran at Azure. He held a pair of black nun-chucks in his paws. He swung them fast and tried to hit Azure with them. She bent backwards and the hard end, whizzed past her face by a few inch's. Then she came back up and punched the Wolf in the jaw. He howled in pain and stumbled backwards. Then Azure kicked him and he flew into a near by wall.

Azure turned to face the finally guard. The Rhino stared at her in fear. Then he, ever so slowly, held out a set of keys. Azure snatched them from his grasp and growled low. Then he took off running down the hall.

Shakira stepped from around from her hiding place and walked up to Azure. Azure stuck the keys in the hole and unlocked the door. Azure pushed the door open and walked inside. She smiled when she saw her father sitting on the floor. He was in cuffs and chains. But when he saw his daughter, he smiled.

Azure ran over to him and he embraced her in a hug. Then Shakira grabbed the keys and unlocked his cuffs. The chains fell to the ground and Azure helped her father to his feet.

"Come on. We've got to get out of here!" Shakira said, as the hideout began to shake.

Azure nodded, and they all took off running through the door and down the hall.

*Tanis' throne room*

Leon wasn't sure what had become of Shadow and Tanis. And he would have gone to check on his wife, but he was busy, trying to get a Wolf off his back. The Wolf was hanging on for dear life. Digging his claws into Leon's flesh.

Then Kira jumped up and kicked the Wolf in the head. He fell off Leon's back and hit the ground hard. Then Kira froze him on the spot with her powers.

Leon smiled at her. "Thank you, Kira!" he said.

She smiled at him and nodded her head. Leon looked over and saw Blaze and Lance fighting, back-to-back. They were doing quite well together.

Then Leon looked over at Po, Master Shifu and the rest of the Five. They had all, almost beaten their share of the guards.

Po was up against three Wolves. Two brown Wolves and one gray. They had him surrounded from all sides. One had a sword, one had a bo staff and the other had a set of black daggers. The Wolf with the bo staff, lunged at Po and swung his staff, quick and fast. Po, punched him in the gut and the Wolf doubled over. Po grabbed his staff from him and swung it at the Wolf with the nun-chucks. He hit the Wolf in the side of the head, and the Wolf stumbled towards the Wolf with the sword. Then Po grabbed the Wolf, who was still doubling over in pain, and threw him at the other two Wolves. They all tumbled to the ground, in a tangled heap and Po smiled happily at what he had done, all on his own.

Mantis and Viper were working together on five Croc guards, because the others had a hard time, getting through their tough hide. Mantis would strike them at their nerve points and Viper would come around and smack them with her tail. They soon had the five Crocs dealt with.

Monkey was doing well, against a pair of Rhino guards. He would swing under their legs, then would kick them from behind. Then Crane would dive bomb and try to knock them off there feet. Pretty soon, they had the guards on their knees, trying to catch their breath. They quickly cuffed them and pushed them towards the door.

Master Shifu was up against a black Wolf. The two Rhino guards, who had beaten Shadow, and a Croc. Shifu nimbly struck them down and, as Po would say, used his AWESOMENESS against them. He soon had them all running for their lives.

While Tigress was fighting with a Lion, that Leon did not know the name of. The Lion tried to hit Tigress, but she flipped the Lion onto his back. The Lion cried out in pain. Tigress stood over him and growled angrily.

"Please! Don't hurt me!" the Lion whimpered.

Tigress growled at him more. He shook in pure fear. She knew how to scare someone and she did it well. Leon ran over to her, as another Rhino tried to push Tigress off the Lion.

Leon fought hard. He hit the Rhino with a Palm Strike. Then a Reverse Round House Kick. The Rhino stumbled backwards and Leon jumped up and came down with a swift Drop Kick. Which he followed up, with a hard Side Kick. In which he sent the Rhino tumbling across the room. Leon smiled. He had won.

Then he felt the hideout shake. He looked around the room. The other's had felt it too. As had the guards. The guards left the fight and ran for any exit they could.

"Quickly! We must get out of here!" Shifu called out.

Everyone nodded and then took off running. Tigress grabbed the Lion, she had been fighting, by the scruff of his neck and dragged him out with her.

Leon ran as fast as he could, after the others. They were a little bit ahead of him. He had to dodge rocks and falling pieces of ceiling. Then Leon realized that Blaze and Lance weren't with them.

"Blaze! Lance! Where are you?" he called out.

Then he saw them. They were trying to get to them. But the rock's were blocking their path.

"Go on! Get outta here! I know another way out!" Lance yelled to Leon.

Leon shot Lance a look that said, 'Take care of my baby girl!'. Lance nodded his head in understanding. Then the two ran off another way.

Leon led the other's away from the sight. They ran as quickly as they could, until they made it into the day light. They ran a good bit away from the hideout. Just to be safe. They watched as the hideout crumbled down.

They stood there watching it falling in. Leon could only hope and pray that Lance could get Blaze out of there safely.

*Inside Tanis' hideout*

Shakira and Azure ran as fast as their legs could carry them, through the hideout. Azure was helping her father along with them, though he had a hard time keeping up. Then Azure pulled to a sudden stop when she heard something. She let go of her fathers paw and started off towards the sound.

"Azure, wait! Where are you going? We've got to get out of here!" Shakira called after her.

Azure turned back and forced a smile. "I'll be fine. Just get my dad out!" she called.

Then she turned and ran off. Shakira nodded and quickly helped Azure father out.

*Outside*

Leon stood at the front of the group. His eyes scanning the crumbling hideout for any sign of his wife or daughter. The others were standing guard around the Lion, that Tigress had dragged out with her. They were trying to question him, but he was stubbornly being quiet. Then they looked up and saw Shakira come staggering out. She was dragging an older Cheetah along with her.

She looked behind her, as the hideout caved in. Leon ran to her, as she helped the older Cheetah away from the rubble. She whipped her head around. Then asked something, that Leon was afraid to hear.

"Where are Shadow, Blaze and Lance?" Shakira asked, worry in her voice.

Leon shook his head. "Lance and Blaze got cut off from us. And I'm not sure about Shadow. What about the young Cheetah you were with?" Leon asked.

"She and I went to get her father, then we were almost out, when she turned and ran the other way. I asked where she was going, and she said to get her father out. I think she heard something and wanted to check it out!" Shakira said.

Then she looked at Leon sadly. "Leon. Do you think Tanis got out?" she asked quietly.

Leon didn't know what to say. "If he did, then I'd say he's lucky! I thought Shadow was gonna tare him to shreds!" Leon said.

Then Leon realized something. He stopped and looked at Shakira, with fear in his eyes. "Where's Silver?" he asked.

From the moment the fight started, up until then. He had forgotten his son was missing. He thought Tanis would keep him with Shadow. But he wasn't there when he saw her. Shakira looked as if she was going to cry. Leon just stared at her in fear.

"I'm so sorry, Leon! I was to late to stop him!" Shakira sobbed.

"What? Tell me what you're talking about!" Leon demanded.

Shakira stared at him, with tears rolling down her face at the thought of how much this would brake his heart.

"Silver's gone. Tanis killed him!" Shakira said, through her sob's.

Leon felt his whole world stop. Nothing moved around him. He fell down to his knee's and just felt everything stop dead still. Tigress left the Lion with the other's and ran over to him.

She knelt down beside him and talked to him, but he couldn't hear what she what she said. Then he saw her face suddenly turn to one of sorrow. And he knew that Shakira had told her about Silver. Soon they all knew, and they were all heartbroken.

But what made it worse, was they didn't know if Blaze, Lance and Azure were going to make it out. And they didn't know what happened to Shadow. Or if she was even still alive...

***sniff, sniff* Ok, that was sad. Poor Leon. His whole world is crashing and burning around him. But what's going to happen now? Will he lose his wife and daughter as well? Guess we'll find out next time. But until then, please don't forget to review!**


	19. Can this really be fixed?

**Ugh... it's been WAY to long, since I got a new chapter up. Well, it's really long to make up for that and yeah. Just enjoy it!**

_Chapter nineteen: Can this really be fixed?_

*Inside Tanis' hideout*

Lance and Blaze ran, as fast as their legs would carry them. They knew they had to get out of there soon. Lance looked around and saw the exit he was aiming for. He grabbed Blaze's paw and dragged her along with him.

They were almost to it, when part of the floor gave way and Blaze fell through.

"_Blaze_!" Lance cried, as she slipped down.

Lance ran and dropped down next to the hole. He reached down and grabbed her paw, just before she went out of reach. He held tight to her paw, as she dangled over the edge.

"Lance! Let go!" Blaze yelled.

"I won't let you go!" Lance said.

"If you don't let go. Then we'll both fall!"  
"Then so be it! I won't let go! I care for you too much!"

Blaze looked up at Lance and saw him smiling down at her. She smiled at him.. She knew he wouldn't let her go, even if he fell too. He wouldn't let her go.

Then the hideout shook more and the hole, slowly got bigger. Lance tried to pull Blaze up, but started slipping. Just when Lance was about to slip, someone grabbed his ankles and pulled both Lance and Blaze back up.

When Blaze was out of the hole, Lance grabbed her paw and dragged her away from it. When they were far enough away, they saw who had helped them. It was a young Cheetah, one that they had seen with Shakira.

"Are you two ok?" the Cheetah asked.

Blaze and Lance both nodded. The Cheetah smiled at them.

"Thank you for helping us!" Blaze said. Lance nodded in agreement.

"I was happy to help. You must be Shadow's little girl!" the Cheetah said, pointing to Blaze.

Blaze nodded, slightly confused. "Yes, but who are you?" she asked.

"My name is, Azure. I'm a friend of your mom's. Now how about we get you outta here!" Azure said.

The two cubs nodded and leapt to their feet. Azure jumped to hers as well and they all made a brake for the exit. They were almost there, when a large part of the ceiling caved in and broke.

Blaze and Lance both let out a terrified scream. Azure looked up and saw the rocks falling towards them. She closed her eyes and a shield of water came up around them.

The rocks bounced off the shield and away from the three cats. Azure did her best to keep her shield up. Blaze held tight to Lance. He hugged her and tried to calm her down some. Azure knew she couldn't hold up her shield much longer.

"Ok, guys, get ready to run!" Azure yelled.

"Wh-what?" the two cubs stammered.

"Just get ready!" Azure yelled.

The two cubs quickly nodded and Azure shot up a blast of water. Knocking back the rocks.

"_RUN_!" Azure screamed.

The two cubs jumped to their feet and took off running towards the door. Azure quickly followed, but felt a sudden sharp pain in her leg. She yelped and fell to the ground. She looked back and saw one of the rocks had fallen on her leg.

Blaze and Lance hurried back and helped her push the rock off, then they helped her to her feet and they all ran for the door.

*Outside Tanis' hideout*

Leon just sat there on his knees. He couldn't believe it. Tanis had... killed his son! Would Tanis really go this low? This was man who raised him from a cub. But was also the man who had lied to him all his life. But deep down, he really never thought Tanis would go _this _low.

He shook his head. He couldn't believe it. But deep down inside. He knew he did believe it.

"He... he can't be..." Leon said, tears streaming down his face.

Shakira gently placed a paw on his shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Leon. Shadow tried. But Silver died protecting her. He knew the price that would have to be paid. And he wasn't afraid to die. He did it proudly!" Shakira said, trying to bring comfort to the weeping Tiger.

"I-I just... I-I can't believe he's... gone!" Leon said, through his sobs.

Then he slowly lifted his eyes to the piles of rubble. Where were Lance and Blaze? Then he saw them come stumbling out of the ruined hideout, along with Azure. They looked fine. But Azure didn't look so good.

Leon jumped to his feet and ran to them, followed by Shakira and Azure's father.

"Daddy!" Blaze cried, as she ran into his arms.

He knelt down and hugged her close to him. He had been so afraid that he would lose her as well.

"Mama, mama!" Lance yelled, as his mother pulled him into a hug as well.

Azure's father walked over to her. And carefully hugged her. "Oh, my brave baby girl. I'm so proud of you!" he said.

Leon could see tears falling from his eyes. He knew how that felt. He also saw Azure smiling. Like his praise meant the world to her. He also knew how that felt. Tanis hardly ever praised him. And when he did. Leon was very proud.

But now. It seemed like a waste, to want to have Tanis proud of something he did. Then Blaze slowly pulled away from him.

"Daddy. Where are mama and Silver?" she asked.

Leon rose to his feet and stood there, staring down at her. How could he tell her, that she would never see her brother again. He bent down on one knee, and he looked her square in the eye.

"I don't know where mama is. But... I'm so sorry, sweetie. Silver's gone!" Leon said, as tears started to roll down his face again.

Blaze just stared at him in horror. "Wh-what do you mean? Where is he?!" she asked.

Leon could see tears forming in her eyes. He knew how upset she was.

"Silver's in a better place now. He's looking down on us. And I know that he's smiling. He's glad that we're all safe!" Leon said, trying to hold back tears.

Blaze just shook her head. "No. No daddy, no! He cant be!" Blaze cried.

She flung herself into his arms, and cried on his shoulder. "Make him come back, daddy! Make him come back!" Blaze sobbed.

Leon simply cried with her. "I can't, sweetie! We just have to believe that he's safe. No matter what. He's somewhere safe!" Leon said, through his quiet sobs.

Blaze just continued to cry. Leon knew how she felt. Her heart was broken. Kira ran over and hugged Lance. She was so happy to see her brother alive. Then she and Lance walked over to Leon and Blaze.

"We're so sorry. We wish we could have stopped our father!" Lance said.

Blaze turned to face him. Her face was wet from her tears. Then she ran to him and he embraced her in a hug. She cried, and he held her. Then Kira joined their hug. The three friends hugged each other and cried. Blaze missing her brother, Lance and Kira missing their friend.

Leon slowly rose to his feet and closed his eyes. He couldn't believe his son was gone. Tigress walked over to her brother and gently laid a paw on his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Leon! I know how hard this is for you. But right now, we need to look for Shadow! She may be hurt and may need our help!" Tigress said.

Leon nodded his head sadly. "Then let's go. I can't lose two member's of my family!" Leon said.

Then Leon walked over to Azure. She was looking down at her leg. It was swollen. And it didn't look right. He knelt down next to her and forced a sad smile.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

She looked at him. He saw pain in her eyes. "I will be, when we find Shadow!" she replied.

Leon nodded his head. "Same here. My names, Leon. What's your's?"  
"Azure. Shadow told me about you. She cares a lot about you!" she said.

Leon smiled at the thought of his wife. "Can you walk?" he asked.

Azure sighed. Then slowly nodded her head. Leon grasped her paw and carefully hauled her to her feet. Her father stood up and let her lean on him. Then they started to look for Shadow.

'_Please. Oh please. Let her be alright!' _Leon thought, as he walked along with his family, and his new friends.

*Area: unknown. Place: Shadow's dreamscape*

_Shadow wasn't sure where she was. But she felt... at peace. Then, she saw someone she thought she'd never see again. Shadow's face had a broad grin and tears in her eyes as she ran forward. And was quickly embraced in her parents arms._

_"Mama! Daddy! I thought I'd never see you both again!" she sobbed._

_Her parents smiled as they hugged their daughter close to them._

_Her mother smiled at her daughter. Her white and black coat was as soft as snow. Her soft blue eyes, shone bright. And her forehead had a beautiful pattern of stripes.  
__Her father held his daughter close. His white and black coat had a bright shine to it. His dark blue eyes showed years of hard work and love for his family. And his forehead had the pattern, like an arrow head._

_Her mothers name was, Hīrō, meaning hero, in Japanese.  
__Her fathers name was, Kaminari, meaning thunder, in Japanese._

_Even though both of Shadow's parents were from India, their parents had loved the Japanese names and they stuck._

_"We know sweetie. We've missed you so much. Look how you've grown!" her father said with a smile._

_He pulled away from Shadow and cupped her chin in his paw. She looked up at him and smiled through her tears._

_"Shadow. As happy as I know you are to see us. I'm sure you know that we're here for a reason!" Shadow's mother said._

_Shadow nodded her head sadly. She was afraid that they were here for a reason. She only hoped it was a good one._

_"We're here, because of our grandson, Silver!" her father said._

_Shadow felt her heart drop at her sons name. She closed her eyes and fought back tears. But his name still rung in her head._

_"What about him?" Shadow asked after a moment._

_Her mother smiled kindly at her daughter. "I know how much you miss him, sweetie. Just like you miss us! But, perhaps, you won't have to miss him!" her mother said._

_Shadow looked up at her mother. Confusion was written all over her face. "I don't... I don't understand! How can I not miss him? He was my son! I loved him!" Shadow cried. She felt tears slip down her face._

_Her father pulled her into a caring hug and gently rubbed her back._

_"We know. But there maybe a way to change this!" her father said._

_Shadow felt her heart skip a beat at the thought she could save her son._

_"You mean there's a way to change this? A way to make this right?" Shadow quickly asked._

_Both of her parents smiled and nodded their heads._

_"There is a cave, not to far from here. In it, is a stone. It's called, The Time Stone! It can send you back or forth through time. It can even send you to a different dimensions! But in your case. It can bring Silver back. It can change this!" her mother said._

_Shadow felt so happy. That she cried. She smiled. And she laughed._

_Something she hadn't done in a long time. Her parents then frowned sadly._

_"But we must warn you. You will be met with a great challenge! And unfortunately. We must go now. We love you very much. Never forget that! Now. Go and get your son back!" they both said together._

_Shadow hugged them one last time. Then they disappeared. And Shadow woke up._

*Real world*

Shadow slowly forced her eyes open and looked around. It was dark. And it was very dusty. She coughed a few times and tried to sit up. But she found that there were rocks on top of her and they held her down.

She sighed and looked down. She felt tears prick her eyes, when saw Silver. It looked as if he were fast asleep. Like Tanis had never hurt him.

"I will make it to that cave. I _will _make things right!" Shadow said.

Then she braced herself, and pushed up on the rocks with her back. She felt her arms trying to give way under her. But she wasn't about to give up. She pushed and pushed. Until the rocks finally gave way.

She looked up to see the sun shining through. She smiled and slowly rose to her feet. She turned to pick up Silver, when she heard her name being called out.

She turned to see Leon running up to her. She smiled as he embraced her in a tight hug.

"I thought I'd never see you again!" he said, through soft sobs. Shadow buried her face into Leon's chest, and let him rock her back and forth. When he pulled away. He looked behind her and saw Silver lying on the ground.

"I couldn't let him stay in there!" Shadow said quietly.

Leon held back a sob and pulled her close to him again. He knew what she was feeling. And she should never have had to feel this feeling again. But she was and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

"Why don't we have a ceremony here for him, before we head for home." Leon said.

Shadow looked at him and shook her head. "No, Leon. He's not gone. I know it!" she protested.

"Shadow... you've got to let him go!"  
"I will never give up hope. He will come back to us. No matter what!" Shadow cried.

Leon looked her in the eye. Even though they were teary, he could see hope in them.

"Shadow. Do you know something, that I don't know?" he asked.

She smiled. "My mama and daddy came to me. They told me how to make it better. How to fix this!" she explained.

Leon was still confused, but had a hopeful smile on his face. Then Shadow looked behind Leon, to see the other's walking up. Blaze hung onto Tigress' paw tightly. Lance and Kira walked beside her. They were all holding hands. She could see that Po was helping Azure limp along. Shadow began to worry about her friend.

Then she looked at a Lion that Tigress was dragging along with her free paw. He looked a lot like Tanis. Shadow cocked her head to the side. He looked... familiar.

"Leon... who's that?" Shadow asked.

Leon turned to look at the Lion. "Who him? I think his name is... Ajani!" Leon replied.

Shadow stared at him for a moment. Then her eyes went wide. "Ajani... I can't believe I didn't recognize him. I should have. He almost killed me as a cub." Shadow mumbled to herself.

Leon looked at her, worried. "Are you ok, Shad'ika?" he asked.

She then turned to Leon. "I-I will be. There's a cave not to far from here. I'm taking Silver there. Take care of Azure. Then wait for me outside the cave!" Shadow said.

Leon looked at her sternly. "If I hear you screaming or if I sense that anything is wrong. I'm coming in there after you. Understand?" Leon asked.

She smiled at him. "I understand. But... I think you'll know, when it's time to come in!" she said.

Then Shadow slowly wrapped her arms around Leon's waist and brought her lips to his. They stayed there for a moment, before Shadow pulled away and stared at Leon, with her bright blue eyes.

"I _will_ bring our son back." Shadow whispered.

Then she pulled away and walked over to Silver. She gently lifted his body from the ground and ran off, cradling him gently in her arms.

Leon sighed. Then he turned and slowly walked back over to the others.

"Where's mama going, daddy?" Blaze asked. Her face still wet from her tears.

He smiled. "To help your brother!" he replied.

They all looked at him, very confused. They had no idea what he could be talking about.

"Shadow knows how to bring Silver back!" Leon explained.

They all started to ask how and where she was going. But Leon held up his paws to silence them.

"I don't know how. That's up to Shadow! And where, is a cave, not far from here. So what she wants us to do, is for starters, help Azure with her leg! Then we're to meet her at the cave! She said that I'll know when to come in. So for now. Viper, will you please hand me the first aid kit?" Leon asked.

Viper want to get the first aid kit, passing by Ajani as she did. The Lion growled at her and bared his fangs angrily. She hissed back at him. Then she popped the end of her tail on his foot like a whip. He moaned in pain, as he hopped on one foot.

Viper smiled to herself, then she pulled the first aid kit out of a bag, and handed it to Leon.

"Now then. Let me see what I can do to help!" he said, as he began to check Azure's leg.

Leon gently pushed on her leg and Azure winced in pain. He nodded to himself, then rose to his feet and walked around. He found two pieces of wood, that were buried in the ashes and rubble, of Tanis' hideout.

He walked back over to Azure and laid the pieces on either side of her leg. Then he reached into the bag and pulled out a roll of thick bandages and wrapped them around her leg and the wood.

He smile at his handy work and rose to his feet. Now she had a splint on her leg and would be able to walk a little easier. Now all they had to do, was get to the cave.

*Deep in the bamboo forest*

One lone figure ran through the forest, on all fours. He panted heavily and could feel the pads of his paws burning, with every step he took.

But Tanis would not stop. He would not rest, until he found some place safe to stay.

He couldn't believe he had let them beat him again! And he had let Ajani get captured. That was not good. He would have to find a way to get his younger brother back from them. Or even, brake him out of jail, if they sent him there. Because he wasn't through with Shadow and her family. Not by a long shot!

He would be back. He would follow them to the other side of the world, if he had too. Then, when they least expected it. He would strike.

"Watch out, Shadow. I'm not down for the count, yet!" Tanis thought aloud, as he ran through the woods.

Soon; Tanis would return.

And he _would _have his revenge...

**FINALLY! Man, that was a long chapter. And it would seem that there is a way to save Silver! I sure hope that Shadow can make it there! So yeah, hope you liked it all and please don't forget to leave a review!**


	20. Welcome Home!

**Whoo, FINALLY got the next chapter up! So yeah, here it is all. Enjoy it!**

_Chapter twenty: Welcome Home!_

*Bamboo forest*

Shadow raced through the tall bamboo stalks. She wasn't about to stop and rest. She had to make it to that cave. She just had too!

She continued to run as fast as she could. Silver cradled gently in her arms. She looked down at her son. He looked so peaceful. As if he was sleeping. She would _not_ let him down.

Shadow soon came to a part in the trees. And there it was. The cave she'd been looking for. She took a deep breath, and made her way up the hill, and into the cave. It was very dark. Luckily. She was a cat. And cats have wonderful night vision.

She slowly scanned the cave. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness. She saw the walls and the cold stone floor. Then her gaze fell upon a small pedestal. And on top of it; was, The Time Stone!

Shadow smiled, as she slowly walked towards it. Then a soft female voice rang out.

"Who dares come near, The Time Stone?"

Shadow stopped dead still. She slowly looked around. There was no one in the cave, but her.

"I asked. Who dares come near, The Time Stone!" the voice called out again.

"I dare! I am, Master Shadow, of the Jade Palace. I come near, The Time Stone, seeking it's help!" Shadow called out.

She looked around. Still, there was no one in the cave, but her.

"What help do you seek?" the voice asked.

"That my son be brought back to me!" she replied.

Shadow thought for a moment. _'That voice... it sounds... so familiar!'_

"For that to happen. You must face my challenge!" the voice boomed.

Shadow stood up tall. "Then so be it! What is the challenge?" she asked.

"You must give something up. In order for your son to live!" the voice said.

Then Shadow remembered the warning her mother had given her. _"Never be selfish. Always have an open heart. No matter what happens. Be true to yourself! Or suffer the consequences!"_

She thought for a moment and she knew what she had to do.

"I except the challenge!" she called out.

"Then place you son, in front of the pedestal!" the voice said.

Shadow did as she was told. She gently laid Silver in front of it. Then she slowly backed away.

"What do you offer, in order for your son to live?" the voice asked.

Shadow knew that she was taking a big risk. But it was worth it.

"I give my life, for my sons! But I have one request!" she called out.

"Hmm... and what would that be?" the voice asked, clearly irritated.

"I ask that I be aloud to... say good bye to my son. To tell him how proud I am, of the strong warrior he has become. And to tell him how much I love him!" Shadow said, a tear slipped down her face.

The voice was quiet. Then after a moment, it spoke. "You have a pure heart, Shadow. You are not selfish. And you care more about others, then you do yourself. Because of that. Your son will live. And so will you!" the voice called out to her.

Shadow slowly began to smile. Her son would live and so would she.

"But. You still must pass the challenge!"  
"What do you want me to give, in order for my son to live? I'll do anything!" Shadow said.

The voice let out a quiet laugh. "It is not something you must give. It is something you must take back!"

Shadow thought for a moment, then she knew what that was. "My sickness. The one that Tanis healed me of. The one I'm finally cured of... I accept it. I accept it for my son!" she said.

"I must warn you. For it to be given back. It will almost be like you were just given it. You will have to fight, to stay alive!" the voice said.

"I'll do anything to save Silver!" Shadow said.

"Then let us begin..." the voice said.

Suddenly a bright light came out of no where. It circled around Shadow. Then the light came closer to her. Then it engulfed her. She felt it all come back to her. She felt the weakness that it causes. The horrible feeling it gave off. The sickness ran coursed through her body. But she wasn't going to stop. She let it come.

She remembered when she first received it. And why she had done it. She had done it for Tigress. And now she did it for her son. And she did it proudly!

When the light disappeared. All that was left was the White tigress. She was shaking and she was very weak. But she stayed upright.

She looked at the pedestal. A bright white light shone around it. Then a White Wolf suddenly appeared. It had strikingly deep blue eyes. Shadow began to grin uncontrollably, at the sight of the Wolf.

"You!" she said with a smile.

The Wolf smiled kindly at her. "That seems to be the greeting we always have! I have always known, that you would do great things when you grew up. Now; it has been proven! It is so good to see you again. And I am sorry that I had to test you like this. But it was the only way!" the Wolf said.

Shadow nodded her head. "I understand!" she said.

"Now, I'm afraid I must go. But I wish you well on your quest!" the Wolf said.

Shadow stared at her, confused. "What quest?"  
"The one that you will be embarking on soon. Good luck, Shadow. And good bye!" the Wolf said.

Then the white Wolf, disappeared from sight. Shadow looked up and smiled.

"Good bye... Aniu!" she whispered.

Then the cave grew very bright. Shadow closed her eye and covered her face with her arms, because it was so bright. Finally, the light died down. And Shadow heard a voice she had feared she would never hear again.

"Mama?"

Shadow felt tears running down her face, as she saw Silver slowly sit up and smile at her. She started to sob softly, as she ran forward and embraced her son in a tight hug.

"Oh Silver! I thought I'd never see you again!" Shadow said, through her sobs.

Silver hugged his mama tight. He could feel tears falling from her face, down into his fur. He wasn't sure if she was sad or happy.

"Oh mama. I'm so sorry! But I couldn't let him hurt you!" Silver said.

Shadow held him close to her. She stroked the back of his head and gently rocked him back and forth.

"No, don't be. I am _so_ proud of you! You did a brave and unselfish thing. You have no need to be sorry!" Shadow said.

Silver pulled away and smiled at her. He gently rubbed his head under her chin. Then she pulled him close to her again. She sat there on her knees, hugging him tight.

Then Shadow spoke quietly. "You may come in now, Leon!"

And from outside the cave. Leon heard her. He heard what she said. He sighed and slowly began to walk towards the cave. Only stopping to tell Blaze to come with him.

They both hiked up the hill together in silence. When they got there, they stopped and then slowly stepped in. They looked around and saw Shadow hugging Silver tight. Shadow looked up at them and smiled.

"I told you I would never give up!" she said, tears falling from her eyes.

Leon smiled, as tears began to roll down his face Blaze gasped and ran to them, as she began to cry.

"Mama! Silver!" she cried, as Shadow pulled her into their hug.

She hugged them both close to her and purred. She rubbed her head, against the tops of theirs. She was so happy to have both her children with her. Leon smiled and walked over to them.

He bent down and scooped Blaze into his arms. Shadow did the same with Silver. Then the four joined in a hug. They just stood there. Hugging each other.

Then Shadow and Leon set the two cubs down. The twin cubs hugged each other. They both laughed and cried, all at once.

Leon smiled at Shadow, as he gently wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him. He rubbed his forehead against hers and purred softly. Then Shadow buried her face into his chest and smiled. Leon stood there, holding the love of his life, gently in his arms. He was so glad she was safe and that his children were safe too.

Leon continued to hug her tight, when he felt Shadow begin to tremble.

"Shadow? Sweetie, are you alright?" Leon asked her.

Shadow looked up at him. She still trembled and Leon could see that she was very tired.

"I-I... I…" she quietly stammered.

Then she suddenly fell to the cold hard floor, of the cave.

"_MAMA_!" Silver and Blaze both cried out.

Leon's eyes went wide and he quickly knelt down beside his wife. He placed two fingers to the side of her neck, checking her pulse. She had one, but it wasn't very strong. And she was unconscious and her breathing was slow.

"Shadow. Shadow wake up! Please, you've got to wake up!" Leon cried.

"Mama, please get up!" Silver cried.

Then Silver began to shake her shoulder gently. Tears streamed down both of the cubs faces. Leon felt his whole world stop again. He had just gotten Silver back. He couldn't lose Shadow!

"Come on, Ad'ika's. We have to get mama home. _Now_!" Leon said.

Then he gently scooped Shadow into his arms and held her close. He watched her for a moment, and saw her breathing was beginning to slow even more.

'_Don't you die on me now, Shadow! Not after all we've been through together. Not now!' _Leon thought.

He nodded once to Silver and Blaze and the two cubs took off running and quickly shot out the front of the cave, with Leon following close behind, Shadow cradled gently in his arms as he ran...

**Ok, there's the next chapter! I know, poor Shadow! But will she survive? Guess we'll just have to wait and see! But it sure is nice, that Silver is back! So yeah, hope you all liked it and please don't forget to leave your reviews!**


	21. True Heritage

**OK, so I'm sure that you're all on the edge of your seat now, with what happened to Shadow! Well, here is the next chapter! Oh and one thing I'd like to say. With the help of my awesome friend, Hero! (Thunderbolt015. Check out her AMAZING story sometime!). I've picked out a theme song for this story! Now I've got a warning. This song might make you cry! So you've been warned! Here's the Youtube link to it!**

**watch?v=2UWx-shGM0g**

**And now that I've rambled on and on and have taken up your time, I'll shut up and let you all get to reading!**

_Chapter twenty one: True Heritage_

Leon quickly ran out of the cave, following after his kids. He fought back tears, that threatened to come to his eyes. When they got through the trees, down to where they had left the others, Leon saw his friends look up suddenly, when they heard them.

"Leon!" Tigress cried, running up the small incline, towards him and his cubs.

She stumbled a bit, when her eyes fell on the unconscious White tigress, in Leon's arms.

"How did this happen?" she asked, as she looked Shadow over.

Leon could hear worry, fear and anger in is sisters tone. Leon took a moment to get his composure together.

Leon shook slightly, as he stuttered, "I-I don't know. She just blacked out all of a sudden, a-and-"  
"The guardian of the Time Stone," Master Shifu said, walking over to the group of Tigers, followed by Po and the rest of the Five. "needs sacrifice to fulfill a certain task."

Leon felt his heart drop at that. He felt that all hope was gone at that point. What more could they do?

The South Chinese Tiger stared down at his unconscious wife. He couldn't lose her. He cared so much for her, he just couldn't lose her. Then Leon looked up and saw the young female Cheetah limp over towards them.

Silver looked over at her, with tears in his eyes. The Cheetah stared down at Shadow with fear and worry in her eyes.

Her father, Shujaa, slowly walked over to them and placed a comforting paw on the young Cheetah's shoulder. She looked up at him and forced a smile up at him. Then she turned her gaze back to Shadow.

Then without warning, the young Cheetah suddenly crumpled to the ground. Her father let out a startled yelp, as she did.

"Azure!" Silver cried, as he ran over to her.

He quickly knelt down beside her and shook her. But she was out cold.

"Daddy. What do we do, now?" Blaze asked, very worried.

Leon looked down at his young daughter. "We head for home. It's all we can do now!" he said sadly.

Everyone nodded and Leon got a tighter grip on Shadow, while being careful not to hurt her more. While Tigress walked over and picked up the unconscious Cheetah from the ground. Azure's father hovered nearby, clearly worried about his daughter.

"Come. Let us go home!" Shifu said to the group.

They all nodded sadly, then the group started back to the Jade Palace. Po and the rest of the Five surrounded the Lion, named, Ajani. He growled at them and bared his teeth. But they weren't fazed by it.

'_Tanis. If you don't come and get me outta this mess. I'll _never_ forgive you!' _Ajani thought, as he walked along.

Leon carefully led the way back to the Jade Palace. Lost in his thoughts. _'Shadow... you've taught me so much. Please don't leave me! I can't lose you. Not again.'_

And all the while, Shadow was dreaming.

*Shadow's dreamscape*

_Shadow slowly opened her bright blue eyes. She sat up and looked around. It was dark and there was no one around. She slowly rose to her feet and stood there. She was very unsure of where she was. But she soon found out._

_A female White Tiger appeared in front of her. Her eyes were as blue as Shadow's. And her smile, just as kind. Shadow smiled as she ran to the White tigress._

_"Mama!" Shadow cried, as her mother embraced her in a tight hug._

_"Oh. My wonderful baby girl!" her mother said, as she held her daughter._

_Shadow looked up at her mother and smiled. "Oh, mama. I'm so happy to see you again! But why are you here?" Shadow asked._

_Her mother sighed and gestured, that Shadow sit down. She nodded and did as she was told. Her mother sighed again and slowly sat down in front of her._

_"I am here, to tell you that... you are dying!" her mother said._

_Shadow's face fell at that. She was shocked. She didn't know what to think or say!_

_"Wh-what do you mean?" she asked._

_Her mother looked at her, very confused. "Didn't, Aniu tell you?" she slowly asked._

_That's when Shadow realized what was happening. "My sickness." she said quietly, with realization on her face._

_Her mother nodded. "That's right. And now, you must fight it off again!" she said._

_"But how? The closet place that, the Water Bloom, grows is Japan!" Shadow exclaimed._

_Her mother nodded in understanding. "Yes. But there is another way. Come with me!" her mother said. _

_Then she rose to her feet and walked off. Shadow jumped to her feet and ran after her mother._

_"There is a way to stop this sickness, Shadow. You must find, Oceania!" her mother said._

_Shadow cocked her head to the side and asked, "What's that?"  
__"It is a legendary sword. One that controls water! If you can find it. You can stop the sickness!" her mother explained._

_"But... how can I find it?" Shadow asked._

_"Because, my dear. You are a Shadow-Cat!" her mother said._

_Shadow looked up at her mother, confused. "What do you mean?" she asked._

_"Let me explain. Long ago and still to this day. A clan of cats would roam the forest. They are called the, Shadow-Cats, because of their ability to hide in the shadows. They would sneak and creep. They would scare and harm people. Just for the fun of it! But long ago, there was a cat born into their clan. She was different. She was a White Tiger. But she did not have the power to bend in the shadows. She had the power of water! She did not agree with her clans choices. And soon, she fled to India. Where she became the personal guard to the emperor himself! Then she and all her children, were appointed an important job. You see. We have a great Heritage. My father and your father's, father were great warrior's!" her mother explained._

_"You mean, they were Kung Fu Master's?" Shadow asked._

_"No my dear. Your grand father's were Knight's!" her mother said._

_Shadow cocked her head again. Then asked, "Knights?"  
__"Yes. They were the great protectors of India!" her mother said, proudly._

_"So, how does that help me?" Shadow asked._

_"You see, my dear. Your fathers, father knew my father. That is how your father and I met. And your father was trained to be a Knight. As well as I! But when we found out that I was pregnant with you, and what with the great war, we feared for your safety. So we fled from India, in search of a peaceful home. But we still carried our great heritage with us!"_

_Her mother stopped and stared at her daughter. Shadow stood tall, proud and brave. She had fought through so much pain and yet, still she knew how to love._

_"My daughter. Since your father and I never taught you, your true heritage. It has made a path to your healing! I'm afraid that it is very hard to explain. But you must trust me. You must find, Oceania! Or suffer the consequences." her mother said._

_Shadow raised her head proudly. "I won't let you down, mama! I will find it! And I will make you proud!" Shadow said._

_Her mother smiled kindly at her. Then hugged her daughter one last time._

_"I know you will. Because you are a Shadow-Cat. You can do anything!" she said._

_Shadow smiled. She knew she would do well. If anything, she had to do it for her family._

_"Now. You must rest and prepare for your quest. I love you very much. Good luck, my wonderful daughter!" her mother said._

_Then she left in a flash of light. Leaving, Shadow to her dreams._

_And the hard fight and long journey ahead of her..._

*Real world*

Leon silently led the group back to the Jade Palace. He wasn't sure what had just happened to his wife, but he knew that it wasn't good at all.

He looked back to his sister and saw her eyes held fear. He knew she was scared for Shadow. He was too. Then he looked over and saw Silver and Blaze, hanging tightly with Lance and Kira. They smiled just a little. But Leon could see how scared they were, for their mother.

He glanced down at Shadow. She seemed so peaceful. He was _so_ scared for her. He just couldn't lose her. He loved her so much. He just couldn't.

Leon looked up and saw the Jade Palace, slowly come into view. By the time they reached the top of the stairs, the sun was just rising. They had walked all night long. They all gathered at the top of the stairs and waited for Po to catch up.

When he finally did, badly out of breath, Master Shifu addressed them all.

"Well, we have a lot to do, and I know that you're all very tired. As soon as we have someone look after Shadow and Azure. We can all get some rest! Crane, well you please go and fetch Shawna! I believe we'll need her expertise on this. She is one of the best doctors in the Valley!"

Crane bowed his head and then took to the skies, to find the Red Fox, Shawna. Leon turned to face Master Shifu. Shadow still cradled gently in his arms.

"What do you want us to do, Master Shifu?" he asked.

Master Shifu sighed. "I supposed that we should wait for Shawna! Tigress, take Azure and find her a spare room. Leon, take Shadow to your room!" he said.

The two siblings nodded and quickly headed for the Student Barracks. Azure father followed after Tigress, as she led him to one of the spare rooms. While Leon quickly sprinted to his and his wife's room. He looked back and saw his twin cubs bounding after him.

"I thought you two, were going to stay with your friends!" Leon said, as the two Tiger cubs caught up with him.

They both shook their heads and stood up and walked on two legs.

"No daddy. We're coming with you!" Blaze said.

"Yeah! We want to know how mama is!" Silver added.

Leon smiled at them. "Alright. Come on!" he said.

The two cubs smiled and nodded once. Then they quickly headed for their room.

When they got there, the twin cubs, opened the door and let their father walked in. Leon walked over and gently laid Shadow down on the bed. He bent over and gently ran his paw across her forehead.

'_She's got a _bad_ fever.' _he thought.

He watched her and could see she was sweating and breathing heavily. Silver and Blaze walked over and they each grabbed a hold of Leon's paws.

"Daddy, is mama going to be ok?" Silver asked, with tears in his eyes.

Blaze looked up and nodded. She had tears rolling down her face. Leon bent down and hugged his cubs close.

"You bet she is. She always pulls through!" he said.

"What about, Azure?" Silver asked.

Leon could see that Silver was worried about her. He forced a smile at his son.

"Don't worry. I'm sure that she'll be just fine! She probably was just worn out, is all!" Leon said.

The two cubs nodded sadly. Leon glanced over at Shadow and could see her writhing slightly on the bed. He knew she must be hurting, _especially _with that fever.

Then Leon slowly rose to his feet. "Come on. Let's go check on, Azure and see if she's ok!" he said.

The two cubs looked up at him, then looked over at their mother.

"But what about mama, daddy?" Blaze asked.

He smiled gently at her. "Mama will be fine. We can come back and sit with her, after we check on Azure!" he said.

Though really. He didn't want them to see their mother in such pain. He didn't want them to see her hurting.

After a moment's thought, the two Tiger cubs slowly nodded and grasped their fathers paws. He smiled at them and led them out. Taking one last glance at his wife, before he shut the door and quietly walked away...

**Aw, poor Shadow! Seems like she has quite the fight ahead of her! But will she be alright? What will happen next? Guess we'll just have to wait and see! I'll TRY to have a new chapter up soon, but I can not make promises! So yeah. Hope you enjoyed it and please don't forget to review!**


	22. A Second Chance

**Alright, it's been WAY to long since I got a new chapter up! I'm sorry, but this thing called life just took over and went crazy on me! So yeah, enjoy it!**

**Oh and I would like to give credit for the title name to, Moody Shadow. This is the title of one of his stories, and it just seemed to fit. So yeah, all credit goes to him!**

_Chapter twenty two: A Second Chance_

*Student Barracks*

Leon quietly led his children down the hall, to the guest room. He knew that they were afraid for their mother, that's way he took them out of their room. He didn't want them to see her pain.

They walked up to the door and he knocked quietly on it. A few seconds later, Tigress came to the door. She smiled at her brother and let him and the cubs inside.

"How is she?" Leon asked, motioning to the unconscious Cheetah.

Tigress sighed. "I'm not sure. She seems to be dreaming!" Tigress said.

Leon looked over and saw Azure twitching slightly. Her father sat beside her, watching her every move. Silver and Blaze stared at her, worried. Silver more then Blaze. Azure had helped his mama. He would never forget that.

Then Azure moaned quietly and her eyes slowly flickered open. Her father gently grasped her paw in his.

"Azure? Are you alright, sweetie?" he father asked, gently.

Azure blinked her eyes a few times, then things slowly began to focus. She looked over at her father and smiled.

"Dad. I saw mom." she said, with a smile on her face.

Her father rubbed her arm gently. "Y-you did?" he asked, as a small smile, slowly crept up on his maw.

"Yes. A-and she told me how to help Shadow!" Azure said.

Leon felt his hopes rise at that point. He let go of his twin cubs paws and quickly walked over to Azure's bedside.

"What did she say? How can we help Shadow?" he quickly asked.

Azure started to open her mouth, when Shawna walked in.

"Well, looks like one of my patients is awake!" she cheerfully said.

Tigress turned and smiled at her. "Thank you for coming so quickly, Shawna!" Tigress said.

Shawna bowed her head. "I was happy to come. And since it seems this patient is doing alright, I'm going to go and check on Shadow." Shawna said.

Leon nodded and Shawna walked out of the room. Leon turned and bent down in front of his cubs.

"I want you two, to stay here with aunt Tigress, understand?" Leon asked.

The two cubs nodded sadly. They had wanted to check on their mother. Leon gave his cubs a hug and stood up and walked out.

"Azure, what can we do to help mama?" Silver asked.

Azure slowly sat up in her bed. "My mother said that we had to find three different herbs. We have to mix them very carefully or else it could kill her." Azure explained.

Silver and Blaze looked at each other in fear. They couldn't lose their mother.

"Don't worry. The herbs are easy to find and easy to mix." Azure assured them.

They both sighed in relief. Tigress smiled at her niece and nephew. She knew how afraid they were for their mother. And she knew that she would do everything in her power, to keep anything from happening to Shadow.

*Leon and Shadow's room*

Leon walked in and saw Shawna tending to Shadow. Shawna gently ran her paw across Shadow's forehead.

"How is she?" Leon asked.

He could see Shadow twitching every once in a while. He knew she was hurting.

"She has a very bad fever. And she's sweating and trembling badly too." Shawna said.

"But will she be alright?" Leon asked, almost fearfully.

Shawna let out a heavy sigh. "I'm not sure. I've never seen anything like this, even in all my time of tending to others needs, I've never seen such a thing." she said at last.

Leon stared at his wife fearfully. Then Shadow started coughing and gasping. Shawna turned to face her quickly.

"Leon help me with her!" Shawna said quickly.

Leon nodded and hurried over to Shadow. Shawna leaned down next to Shadow and waited for a moment, before she nodded her head and turned to face Leon.

"Leon, I need you to lift her up a bit. Get her head higher!" Shawna said.

Leon nodded and sat down on the bed. He gently lifted Shadow up into his lap. After a moment, she stopped coughing and her breathing smoothed out. Leon gently stroked her face. He was so worried about her.

"Leon, can you hold her still? I need to check something." Shawna said.

Leon nodded and carefully held Shadow. Shawna walked over to her and gently pressed on the side of Shadow's neck. Shawna's face was scrunched up, as she thought.

"Leon, can you please hold her head still?" Shawna asked.

Leon nodded and gently placed both his paws around the back of her head and held it still. Shawna smiled at him. Then she gently opened Shadow's mouth and looked down her throat.

Leon watched Shawna curiously. Shawna continued her examination, but after a moment, her eyes showed worry. Leon watched her, as fear slowly built up inside him. After another moment, Shawna nodded to herself and gently closed Shadow's mouth.

"I-is she ok?" Leon asked fearfully.

"She isn't getting better. She's getting worse." Shawna muttered to herself.

Leon looked up at her, worried. "What's wrong?" Leon asked.

Shawna shook her head, almost sadly. "Her air pipe is closing. If this isn't treated soon, it will close completely and she won't be able to breath!" Shawna said.

Leon looked down at his wife, with fear in his eyes.

"What can we do now?" Leon asked.

Shawna shook her head. "I'm really not sure." she said quietly.

Then Leon thought of something. "Azure, the Cheetah you first checked on, said that her mother came to her in a dream and told her how we could help Shadow!" Leon explained.

Shawna nodded. "Alright, I'll go talk to her. If you need me, I'm just down the hall!" Shawna said.

Leon nodded and Shawn turned and walked out. She quickly walked down the hall, down to the spare room. She knocked lightly, then a moment later, Silver and Blaze poked their heads out.

"May I come in?" Shawna asked.

The two cubs nodded and let the Red Fox inside the room.

Shawna walked over to Azure and asked, "Leon said your mother came to you in a dream. Can you tell us what we can do to help Shadow?"

Azure nodded. "You need three different herbs, to hold it off for a little while! I know what they are and they grow nearby." Azure said.

Shawna nodded. "Alright. Are you in well enough shape, to find them?" Shawna asked.

Azure smiled. "Anything to help Shadow!" she said.

They all smiled at her. Then an ear splitting scream came from down the hall.

"_SHAWNA!"_

Shawna quickly ran for the door, followed closely by the twin Tiger cubs. She turned back to them and held out her paws.

"No, I need you two to stay here, understand?" she asked.

The two cubs nodded sadly and Shawna dashed down the hall. Shawna ran to Leon and Shadow's room and opened the door. She stepped inside and her eyes went wide.

Leon had an expression of pure fear on his face. While Shadow was taking quick gasping breaths. Leon looked up at Shawna, with horror written on his face.

"Shawna, she can't breath!" Leon cried out in fear.

Shawna quickly ran over and looked down at Shadow. Shadow was still taking quick gasping breaths. But with each passing moment, it became harder.

"Hold her up, Leon!" Shawna barked.

Leon nodded and tried to lift Shadow higher. Shawna ran to her medical bag and began to dig around in it. She could hear Shadow struggling to breath. She knew she had to act fast.

She dug around in her bag, until she found a long needle and syringe. She quickly stunk the needled into one of her jars and pulled the medicine into it.

As soon as it was ready, she ran over to the two Tigers. Shadow could barely gasp at this point. Leon had pure fear on his face. Fear for his wife.

Shawna ran over and quickly stuck the needle into Shadow's arm. She slowly injected her with the medicine and gently pulled the needle back out. Shadow continued to gasp, but after a moment, her gasping became less and her breathing began to get back to normal. Shawna shook her head. That had been much to close.

"I'm going to go and tell Azure that we need her to get those herbs, _now_!" Shawna said.

Leon took a deep breath and nodded. Then Shawna turned and walked out. She quickly walked down the hall. She got to Azure's room and didn't bother knocking. She simply walked in.

And that told everyone that something was wrong.

"What's wrong, Shawna?" Tigress asked.

"What's wrong with our mama?" Silver and Blaze both asked.

Shawna shook her head. "Azure, I need you to go and find those herbs now. Shadow can't hold out much longer." Shawna said.

Silver and Blaze both gasped, then took off running for their parents room. Azure nodded and slowly crawled out of her bed.

"Alright, I'll need some help though." she said.

Tigress nodded. "Just tell us what to do." she said.

Azure nodded and smiled at Tigress.

"I'm going to go and check on Shadow again." Shawna said.

The other nodded and Shawna turned and left the room.

As she walked down the hall, she thought about something that might help Shadow. She turned down a different hall and disappeared around the corner.

*Leon and Shadow's room*

Silver and Blaze burst through the door. Both of their faces were tear stained. Leon looked up at them sadly. They both ran to the other side of the bed and crawled up on it.

Once they were on the bed, they dropped down on the sheets and curled up next to Shadow. They were both sniffling and trembling. They both snuggled up against Shadow and rubbed up against her.

Leon stared down at them sadly. He knew how scared they were for their mother.

'_Please, Shadow, you just have to pull through this. You just have to!' _Leon thought, as he watched his two cubs sadly.

*Hall of Heroes*

Po and the rest of the Five, stood watching the Lion named Ajani. He was sitting on the floor, surrounded by the Kung Fu Masters. He glared at them and bared his fangs.

But it didn't faze the Masters. Then Tigress, Azure and Azure's father, Shujaa walked in. They were relieved to see Azure, but they could see that the three cats were worried.

"How's Shadow?" Po asked.

Tigress glanced down at the floor, trying to hide her fearful expression.

"She's not good. But Azure knows something that can help her. We just need to help her find the herbs she needs!" Tigress explained.

They all nodded and looked at Ajani. He growled at them and looked down at the floor.

"Well, what do we do with him?" Mantis asked.

Azure walked over to Ajani and grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and hauled him to his feet.

"I say we lock him up in the basement for a little while. That should keep him outta our fur!" Azure said.

They nodded and Po walked over to them, followed by Monkey and Crane. They took him from Azure and then took him to the basement.

"Alright. Tigress, I need you to help me find the herbs. They should be near the palace." Azure said.

Tigress nodded, then she, Viper and Mantis followed Azure out the door. They quickly headed down the palace steps and towards a small garden that Shifu had grown. He was always planting different things.

And thankfully, he had planted the three plants that they needed. Azure picked two different ones, while Tigress picked the other.

"Alright. Viper, Mantis, will you go check on Shadow, while Azure and I mix up the plants?" Tigress asked.

The two nodded and hurried off to Leon and Shadow's room, while Tigress and Azure hurried to the Kitchen.

*Kitchen*

Tigress and Azure rushed in and quickly got to work. Tigress found a pot and started to boil some water, while Azure measured out the different plants.

'_Please let us make it!' _Azure and Tigress both thought.

*Basement*

Po, Monkey and Crane led Ajani down into the basement and cuffed his arms around one of the pillars.

"There, that should keep you out of trouble!" Crane said.

"Yeah. Maybe now you'll learn your lesson!" Monkey said with a laugh.

Ajani simply snarled at them.

"Come on, guys. Let's go and leave our 'guest' in peace!" Po said.

Then they turned and walked out, closing the door and leaving Ajani alone in the dark room.

*Leon and Shadow's room*

Viper and Mantis hurried to the door and knocked lightly. After a moment, they heard a sad voice softly say, 'Come in'.

They looked at each other, then they opened the door and slowly went in. They looked in and saw Leon sitting on the bed, with Shadow still in his lap. He gently stroked her face and stared down at her sadly, as a lone tear would slip down his face.

Then they saw Silver and Blaze. The two cubs still sniffled quietly and clung tightly to their mother. As if they were afraid if they let her go, something bad would happen.

Viper slithered over to Leon and smiled gently at him.

"Don't worry, Leon. Tigress and Azure are working on the cure. Shadow's going to make it!" Viper reassured him.

"Yeah man, this _is_ Shadow we're talking about!" Mantis piped in.

Leon let out a deep sigh, as he gently rubbed Silver and Blaze's backs. They sniffled and snuggled closer to Shadow. Leon knew how worried and upset they were.

*Kitchen*

Tigress finally got the water to boil and Azure finished sorting out the plants.

"Alright. We need two leaves from the Dorarea plant. Half a leaf from the Links plant. And five leaves from the Chinsi plant." Azure muttered aloud, as she got what she needed.

Then she carefully crushed them and poured the crushed leaves into the pot of boiling water. The two cats looked at each other. Both hoping and praying that this would work.

After another few minutes, the leaves had mixed into the water and the tea was ready. They carefully poured it into a cup and waited a moment for it to cool, before dashing off to Leon and Shadow's room.

Once they got there, they didn't even bother knocking. They simply walked inside. Everyone looked up at them, hope flashed in Leon's eyes, as well as Silver and Blaze's. Tigress and Azure smiled.

"Here, we need her to drink this!" Azure said.

Leon nodded. Then Shawna walked in.

"Hold on. Azure, can we put anything else in with it?" Shawna asked.

"Maybe. What would you want to add to it?" Azure asked.

"It's something that I brought along with me, to help if either of you needed it. It's a special supplement that will give her a little boost of energy, to get her back on her feet!" Shawna explained.

Azure thought for a moment, then nodded her head. "Alright. It shouldn't be a problem." she said.

Shawna nodded once and pulled out a small round pill. She walked over and dropped it into the tea and watched it mix with the water and herb mix.

Shawna looked up and nodded. Azure carefully took the cub and walked over to Leon.

"Leon, can you hold her head up, while I give it to her?" Azure asked.

Leon nodded and gently grasped his paws around the back of Shadow's head, gently lifting it up. He could tell she was still having a hard time breathing. He could only hope and pray that this would work. There was nothing else he could do at this point.

"Ad'ika's. I need you to help us with mama!" Leon said.

Silver and Blaze sat up and nodded. "What do you need us to do, daddy?" they both asked.

Leon smiled at them. "I need you two, to gently hold mama's mouth open, while Azure gives her the special tea." he explained.

The two cubs nodded and crawled to their spots.

"You two ready?" Azure asked.

"Ready!" they both said.

Then they gently opened their mothers mouth and held it open. Azure walked over and very slowly, poured the special tea into her mouth. It took them about fifteen minutes, to get Shadow to drink all of it.

But once they were done, they all heaved a sigh of relief. Leon carefully lowered Shadow's head back down and Silver and Blaze gently closed her mouth.

"Alright, out! All of you. Shadow needs some peace and quiet to recover!" Shawna said.

The others turned and looked at her sadly. Then they looked back at Shadow. She was still having a hard time breathing. They knew that the tea would take some time, to kick in. After a moment, Shadow began to cough again.

Leon gently lifted her higher again, and her cough slowed somewhat. Leon gently held her and slowly started to rock her back and forth. Silver and Blaze both settled back down and snuggled up next to their mother.

Tigress walked up to Azure and placed a paw on her shoulder. "Come on. Let's give them some time alone." she said.

Azure sadly nodded and they all turned and walked out.

After a few minutes, Silver and Blaze fell fast asleep. Leon continued to rock Shadow, as one lone tear slipped down his face. He rubbed his head against hers. He was so scared for her. He couldn't lose her again.

*Outside in the hall*

"Now what?" Viper asked, worried.

"We just have to wait and see if this works." Azure said.

They all looked up, when Po, Monkey and Crane rounded the corner.

"How is she? How are all of them?" Po asked.

Tigress sighed and stared down at the floor. "Shadow's still not doing well. Leon and the kids are pretty upset." Tigress quietly said.

They all nodded and Po stared at the striped cat sadly. He knew how much Shadow meant to Tigress. She was her best friend. Shadow understood Tigress. Most people didn't.

Then after a moment, Shawna spoke up. "I think we all need some rest. I think that everyone should head to their rooms. If you don't mind, I think I'll stay the night, incase I'm needed."

Everyone nodded and Crane showed Shawna to a spare room, next to Leon's and Shadow's room. Shawna quickly settled in and everyone slowly and sadly made their way to their rooms.

Each saying a silent prayer, that Shadow would make it through the night...

**Alright! There is the next chapter! I know it's sorta sad, but hey. Maybe Shadow will make it! Maybe... so yeah, hope you all enjoyed it! I'm sorry about the long wait and I'll try to get more chapters up soon! So yeah, please don't forget to review and yeah. Later!**


	23. Silent Night!

**Yay! New chapter! WHOO! Sorry, just excited to have another chapter going. So yeah, hope you all enjoy it!**

_Chapter twenty three: Silent Night!_

Azure sadly walked to her room, followed closely by her father. They both walked into her room and Azure walked over and sat down on the bed.

She fought hard, to hold back tears. She was so worried about Shadow. Her father walked over and gently patted her shoulder.

"Don't give up hope, just yet. I'm sure your friend will make it!" he reassured her.

Azure looked up at him and forced a smile. Then there was a knock at the door. Shujaa walked over and opened the door. Tigress stood there, holding a folded cot in her arms.

"I thought you might like this, better then the floor." Tigress said.

The older Cheetah smiled. "Thank you, young one. This is most gracious of you!" he said, while bowing his head.

Tigress smiled lightly, as she walked in and set up the cot. She smiled at Azure, then said good night and left the room. Azure and her father settled down for the night and soon they both fell fast asleep. But Azure's sleep was dream filled.

*Azure's dreamscape*

_Azure looked around the darkness, searching for some sort of light to guide her. Then a bright light came from no where and shone brightly._

_Then the light took on the shape of none other then Azure's mother, Viti. Azure beamed at her mom._

"_Hello my dear. It's so wonderful to see you again. Although I'm afraid it isn't quite a happy visit." her mother said._

_Azure cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?" Azure asked._

"_I mean that you did not get the cure to your friend in time." her mother explained._

_Azure felt her heart drop at the thought they might lose Shadow, because they weren't fast enough. She looked up, with sad eyes, and saw her mother smiling._

"_But. There is another way to cure her. The way I told you about before. The one that will cause a deathly weak spot, other then her neck." her mother said._

_Azure nodded. "Alright, what is it?"  
_"_Shadow knows. Her mother came to her as well. Shadow must go on a dangerous quest, to find the sword, Oceania. Then and only then, can she stop the sickness that runs through her." Azure's mother explained._

_Azure nodded. "Am I allowed to go with her? Can I help in any way?" she asked._

_Her mother nodded. "Yes, you may go with her. If her friends join her in her quest, then she had better chances. But I believe she won't want anyone coming with her. So be careful." Azure's mother said._

_Azure nodded. She had gotten to know Shadow well enough, to know she wouldn't put her family and friends into harms way._

"_I wish you the best of luck, my wonderful daughter. I love you very much. Be careful. And please tell your father, how much I love him!" Azure's mother said._

_Azure bowed her head to her mother. Then she ran and embraced her mother in a tight hug._

"_I love you, mama." Azure whispered._

_Her mother smiled and stroked her daughters face, lovingly. "I love you too, my wonderful baby girl!"_

_Then with that said, Azure's mother disappeared and Azure was left to a well deserved sleep._

*Later that night. Leon and Shadow's room*

All night long, Leon hadn't been able to sleep. He was to worried. Worried for his wife and worried for his children.

He watched as Silver and Blaze slept soundly next to Shadow. They were both snuggled up close to her. He knew how scared they were. He was scared too.

He glanced down at Shadow sadly. She still trembled every now and then. And every time, she would wince in pain. He knew how badly she must be hurting. He gently stroked her face and tried not to cry. He was so scared for her, it was hard not to.

All night long he watched her. He just couldn't tare his eyes away from her, but for maybe a moment.

Hours upon hours passed by and Leon continued to watch her. He felt like days had passed by, when only hours had. Everything felt as if it was moving in slow motion. Nothing seemed right.

Leon glanced out the window and saw the stars shining brightly in the night sky. Then he felt Shadow stirring in his arms. He quickly glanced down at her.

"Shadow?" Leon asked hopefully.

She shifted again, then ever so slowly, opened her bright blue eyes. She slowly blinked them a few times, before she looked up at Leon.

"There's my beautiful girl!" Leon whispered, as he felt tears slip down his cheeks.

Shadow smiled up at him, as she slowly reached up and wiped the tears off his fur. She laid her paw on his cheek and he laid his paw on top of hers.

He held her paw tightly and smiled at her. Then he slowly let go of her paw and turned to Silver and Blaze.

"Ad'ika's. Wake up!" he said, as he gently shook them.

After a moment or two, they both stirred away.

"What's wrong?" Silver asked.

"Yeah, why'd you wake us?" Blaze asked, as she rubbed her eyes.

Leon beamed at his children. "Kid's, go and quietly get Shawna!" he said.

They both looked up at him curiously. "Why?" they both asked.

Leon smiled even more. "Mama's awake!" he said.

Both cubs gasped and hurried over to her.

"There are my precious babies!" Shadow said weakly, as she smiled at her two cubs.

They both threw themselves on top of Shadow and they both started sobbing quietly.

"Oh mama! We were so worried about you!" Silver cried.

"Yes, we're so glad you're ok!" Blaze added in.

Shadow rubbed their back soothingly. "I'm alright. I'm alright." Shadow said quietly.

Then the two cubs looked up at Leon. "We'll go get Miss Shawna, daddy!" Silver said, as Blaze nodded in agreement.

Then the two cubs jumped from the bed and hurried out the door. Leon turned back to Shadow and smiled at her. He could see she was still very weak and tired. But he knew she was strong.

"I was so worried about you, Shadow!" Leon said.

She looked up at him and nodded. "I know. But I knew what the price was and I was not about to lose our son." she said quietly.

Leon nodded. He understood why she had made that choice. He would have done the same thing. Then he looked up, when Shawna walked in, along with Silver and Blaze. Shawna smiled at the Tiger couple and walked over.

"Well, it sure is nice to see your smiling face, sweetie!" Shawna said, smiling.

Shadow smiled up at Shawna. "It's nice to see everything." Shadow said.

Shawna smiled and nodded. "Well, let's check you over and make sure that your stable, shall we?" Shawna asked.

Shadow nodded and Shawna got to work. She checked Shadow's breathing, her pulse and a few other things, to insure that she was stable.

"Looks like you're on the mend. I'm sure you'll be back on your feet in no time flat!" Shawna said.

Shadow smiled up at her. "Shawna, will you please take Silver and Blaze to their room?" Leon asked.

Shawna nodded, but Silver and Blaze both pouted and crossed their arms across their chest.

"But we want to stay here with you!" they both said.

Shadow smiled at her twin cubs. "I know you do, Ad'ika's. But mama needs some rest right now and I'd like a little alone time with daddy." Shadow explained

The two cubs sighed and nodded. They both ran over and hugged and kissed, Shadow and Leon, good night. Then they followed Shawna out the door.

Shadow looked up at Leon and smiled. He gently lifted her into his arms and rocked her back and forth. He bent down and rubbed his forehead against hers. They both purred softly in unison. Leon gently ran his paw along Shadow's face, as he smiled at her.

"I love you so much, Shadow. More then I can ever express!" Leon said.

Shadow smiled at him, as she gently grasped his paw. "I love you too, Leon. More then you can imagine." Shadow whispered.

Leon smiled at her and stared into her bright and shining blue eyes. Then he slowly brought his lips to hers. Leon held Shadow close and he felt as if he could never let her go.

They stayed there for what seemed like forever, until Leon slowly pulled away from Shadow. She smiled up at him, as he gently ran his paw along her face. Shadow shifted slightly and laid her head against Leon's chest.

She closed her eyes and sighed in content. Leon held Shadow close, as she rested her head on his chest. As she listened to the steady sound of his heart beat, she softly began to purr.

Leon smiled, as he held her in his arms. After a little while, he could feel Shadow getting heavy in his arms. He knew she was very tired. He gently pulled her away from him and laid her back in bed.

He could see she was almost asleep. Leon smiled at her, as he slowly slid down next to her. She rolled over to face him and smiled. He smiled back at her and leaned close brought his lips to hers again.

When Leon pulled away from Shadow, her eyes were closed and a smile was on her lips. Leon smiled, as he saw her breathing slow slightly. He was glad she was getting some peaceful sleep.

He gently wrapped his arms around her, and soon fell to sleep, holding his love gently in his arms...

**Ok, so I wasn't planning on making it that short, but I wanted to end it on something sweet. So yeah, hopefully I'll have more up soon. And yeah. Please don't forget to leave a review people. I ALWAYS smile when I see your reviews. So yeah, hope you all enjoyed it and yeah. Later all!**


	24. Calm before the Storm

**Whoo! I got another chapter going! YAY! Ok, enough excitement, time to let you guys read! Enjoy it!**

**Oh and on another note, I will be using one of my friends characters. If you want to see more about the new character, I TOTALLY suggest checking out his stories. They're full of action, adventure and suspense. His name is, SiberianTiger45. He's got some awesome stories and yeah. All credit for the character goes to him!**

**Oh and one other thing. The song that Leon sings is called, Lead me, my Sanctus Real. They're AWESOME! I totally suggest looking up the song to listen to. I could almost see that being Leon's voice, in a way. So yeah, I'm going to suggest something that my friend, Moody Shadow, has done before. I'll give you a link to it, and when it gets to the right time, I'll tell you to play the song. So yeah, let's see how this works!**

**watch?v=ffBG7JAvBiw**

_Chapter twenty four: Calm before the Storm_

*The next morning. Leon and Shadow's room*

The sun shone brightly, through the open window. Leon's eyes slowly flickered open, to see his beautiful wife, still sleeping peacefully next to him. He smiled and reached up, gently stroking her face.

He watched her face, as a small smile slowly crept across her maw. He let out a quiet chuckle. Then Shadow's eyes slowly flickered open as well, and she smiled at her husband.

"Hello there, beautiful." Leon gently whispered.

Shadow let out a quiet chuckle. Leon could tell she was still very tired and weak.

"You stay here, I'm going to go get Shawna." Leon said.

Shadow nodded and Leon carefully crawled out of bed. He grabbed his vest and slipped it on. Then he quietly walked out of their room and next door. He was about to knock, when Shawna opened the door.

"Ah, hello Leon. I was just coming to check up on you and Shadow!" the Red Fox said.

Leon smiled. "Thank you, Shawna. Shadow is awake again and I thought I should let you know!" Leon explained.

Shawna nodded, grabbed her black bag and walked with Leon back to his and Shadow's room. They walked in and Shadow looked over and smiled.

"How are you feeling, sweetie?" Shawna asked.

"Still very tired." Shadow replied.

Shawna nodded and set her bag down on the dresser. She dug in it and pulled out her stethoscope. She put the ear pieces in her pointed ears and walked over to Shadow.

"Alright, I want to check your heart beat and your breathing." Shawna said.

Shadow nodded and relaxed. Shawna took the round end piece and carefully laid it on Shadow's chest.

"Just breath normally." Shawna said.

Shadow nodded and did as she was told. Leon watched as Shawna carefully listened.

"It seems that your heart is alright. Now just to check your breathing!" Shawna said, as she walked to the other side of the bed.

"If you could roll over, please." Shawna said, as she sat down next to Shadow.

Shadow nodded and rolled over on her side, facing the door and Leon. She smiled at her husband and he smiled back.

"Alright, hold still and breath normally!" Shawna said, as she lifted Shadow's vest up a bit and laid the round end piece on her back.

Shadow nodded and closed her eyes. After a moment, Shawna nodded and pulled Shadow's vest back down.

"Your breathing is still slightly irregular. I want you to get a bit more rest, before you're up and about." Shawna said, as she got up and walked over to her bag.

Shadow nodded and stayed in bed, while Leon walked Shawna out the door.

"I'll stay a bit longer, to make sure her breathing continues to return to normal!" Shawna said.

Leon smiled and nodded. "Thank you for everything, Shawna. You've helped so much." he said, while bowing to her.

"I was more then happy to help!" Shawna said, returning the bow.

Then the Red Fox turned and walked back inside her room. Leon smiled and walked back inside his room. When he closed the door, Shadow opened her eyes and smiled at him.

"Well, you heard Shawna. You need to rest!" Leon gently teased.

Shadow chuckled quietly. Then Leon walked over and crawled into bed next to her. He gently wrapped his arm around her and she snuggled up next to him. She sighed and closed her eyes. Leon smiled and gently rested his head against hers.

"Leon. Will you sing to me?" Shadow asked quietly.

Leon smiled. He loved singing, especially to Shadow. He purred quietly, as he rubbed his head against hers.

"Alright. What do you want me to sing?" he asked.

Shadow smiled. "I don't care. I just want to hear you sing." she quietly replied.

Leon grinned and thought for a moment. Then he thought of the perfect song to sing to her.

_(Hit it, guys!)_

"I look around and see my wonderful life,  
almost perfect from the outside  
In picture frames I see my beautiful wife,  
always smiling, but on the inside, I can hear her saying...

"Lead me with strong hands  
Stand up when I can't  
Don't leave me hungry for love  
Chasing dreams, what about us?  
Show me you're willing to fight  
That I'm still the love of your life  
I know we call this our homeBut I still feel alone..."

I see their faces, look in their innocent eyes,  
they're just children from the outside  
I'm working hard, I tell myself they'll be fine,  
they're in independent, but on the inside, I can hear them saying...

"Lead me with strong hands  
Stand up when I can't  
Don't leave me hungry for love  
Chasing dreams, but what about us?  
Show me you're willing to fight  
That I'm still the love of your life  
I know we call this our home  
But I still feel alone"

So Father, give me the strength  
To be everything I'm called to be  
Oh, Father, show me the way  
To lead them  
Won't You lead me?

To lead them with strong hands  
To stand up when they can't  
Don't want to leave them hungry for love,  
Chasing things that I could give up  
I'll show them I'm willing to fight  
And give them, the best of my life  
So we can call this our home  
Lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone

Father, lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone."

Leon quietly finished his song and smiled, when he saw Shadow was sound asleep. He leaned over and kissed her cheek.

"Sweet dreams, my Shad'ika." he gently whispered in her ear.

Then he slowly sat up and pulled the covers over her shoulder. She sighed lightly and snuggled down into them. Then he carefully crawled out of bed and quietly walked out the door.

He stood in the hall way for a moment, trying to decide what he should do. Then he turned and headed for the Training Hall. Once he got there, he decided to train on the Seven Swinging Clubs.

He flipped forward, landing lightly, then ducked down, as a club suddenly swung at him. He ducked and dodged his way through the course, then flipped forward, spinning around and landing lightly on the floor.

He perked his ears up, when he heard someone clapping. Then Tigress stepped from out of the shadow's and walked over to her brother.

"How's Shadow?" she asked.

Leon beamed. "Fine. She woke up last night!" he said.

Tigress' eyes went wide and a smile appeared on her face. "She did? Why didn't you come get us?" she asked quickly.

Leon chuckled. "I didn't want to wake you all. Besides, she's still in bad shape and she needed to rest. She woke up again this morning and Shawna looked her over and said she still needs to rest, so she's sleeping right now." he explained.

Tigress nodded, then said, "Well, how about we have a spar. Just brother and sister."

Leon smirked at the challenge. "Let's do it!" he growled playfully.

Then he and Tigress walked over to the Jade Tortoise Shell and they both headed to different sides. They smiled and bowed to each other. Then they took off running and leapt up onto the sides of the bowl.

It dipped slightly to each side, until it balanced out. They locked eyes for a moment, then attacked.

Tigress came at Leon, with a Palm Strike to the chest, which sent Leon backwards a few feet. But Leon quickly recovered and countered with a swift kick to her stomach. Tigress was able to block it, before she attempted to kick Leon's legs out from under him.

She was able to do so, but Leon bent backwards and went into a reverse hand stand, and flipped away from her. Then once he was on his feet again, he jumped up and tried to hit her with a swift Drop Kick.

Tigress stepped back and Leon hit the edge of the bowl hard. Tigress used this time to jump up and over Leon, but he had anticipated that from her.

He quickly reached up and grasped her ankle. Then he pulled her down, into the bowl. Tigress landed on her back, and pulled Leon inside with her.

The two siblings ended up spinning around inside the bowl, throwing punches at each other, before they finally spun out of the bowl, and they each landed on the opposite side, they had stared on.

The two South Chinese Tiger's turned to face each other, then they both slowly smiled. They walked to each other and bowed.

"You've gotten better, Leon." Tigress said.

Leon beamed, when his big sister praised him. Then before Tigress knew it, he had run up to her and embraced her in a tight hug.

Tigress stood still for a moment, then she slowly smiled and returned her brothers hug. After a moment, Leon pulled away from his sister, still smiling.

"So, you really think I'm getting better?" Leon asked, with a smirk on his face.

Tigress let out a laugh. "Yes little brother. You really are!"

The two Tiger smiled, then both their ears perked up, when they heard running foot steps, coming their way. A moment later, Silver and Blaze came bounding through the door. They were both smiling, yet worried.

"Hey, Ad'ika's. Did you sleep well?" Leon asked, as the two cubs slid to a halt in front of the two Tigers.

"We slept just fine, daddy!" Blaze said.

"Yeah, but mama is awake again and miss Shawna asked if you could come help her!" Silver explained.

"What's wrong with her?" Tigress asked, worried.

"Mama's sick!" Blaze said sadly.

"Yeah, miss Shawna wanted daddy to come and help!" Silver explained.

Leon looked at Tigress, then took off running out the door.

"Say you two, why don't you help me start breakfast." Tigress suggested.

The twin cubs smiled and jumped up and down happily. "Yeah!" they both cried.

Then they grabbed their aunts paws and dragged her towards the Kitchen.

*Student Barracks*

Leon hurried through the halls, then when he got to his and Shadow's room, he could hear Shadow coughing hard. He opened the door and walked in.

Shadow was out of bed, half hanging out the window, with Shawna standing beside her, gently patting her back.

'_Man, Silver and Blaze weren't kidding, when they said she was sick!' _Leon thought, as he walked in.

Shadow groaned, as she slowly pulled herself up. Leon could see she was tired and she didn't feel well.

"Feeling better?" Shawna asked.

Shadow closed her eyes and slightly shook her head. Shawna nodded, then slowly helped her back to bed. Shadow sat down and looked up at Leon. She slowly forced a smile, then laid back down.

Leon walked over and sat down next to his wife. He gently grasped her paw in his and smiled at her.

"Don't worry, you'll be over this soon!" Shawna said to Shadow.

Shadow slowly nodded and relaxed some. Leon gently held her paw and smiled down at her. She looked up at him and flashed a smirk. Even though she wasn't feeling well, she was still Shadow.

"I'll be back in a little bit. I suggest you try to get some rest, Shadow!" Shawna said.

Shadow nodded, then Shawna left the room. Shadow closed her eyes for a moment, when everything suddenly began to spin.

Leon gently rubbed her paw. She slowly opened her bright blue eyes and smiled weakly at him.

"Why don't I go tell everyone that you're alright, while you try to get some more sleep." Leon said gently.

Shadow nodded slightly, closed her eyes and was out with in seconds. Leon chuckled, gently kissed her forehead and carefully got up and walked out.

*Unknowns POV*

I carefully tracked through the forest. There were trees everywhere, which meant someone could try to sneak up on me. But I'm a Panther. It will be hard to do that.

I smiled and continued onward. After a while, I could feel myself getting tired and I knew I should get some sleep.

I found a nice tree and sat down underneath it. I leaned back against the tree and closed my eyes, soon falling into a deep, peaceful sleep.

_After a few minutes, I heard someone calling my name. I slowly forced my eyes open and looked around. Everything around me was dark and I knew I wasn't in the forest anymore._

_Then I heard my name being called again. I spun around and came face-to-face with my father._

"_Dad?" I asked, in shock._

_My father smiled down at me and nodded. "Hello son. I see you've grown into quite the warrior. But I am here to warn you of something. Do you remember your friends from the Jade Palace? Tigress, Shadow, Leon and their family?"_

_I nodded quickly. "Yeah, I remember them! Why? What's wrong?" I asked._

_I watched my fathers face and could see it wasn't good._

"_Your friend, Shadow. She needs your help!" he said._

"_What do you mean, she needs my help?" I asked._

"_Your friend, she is dying!" my father explained._

_I felt my heart drop. I wasn't sure what to say. "But... how? Why?" I asked._

"_The sickness, that she was given, has returned. And unlike the last time, she is slowly dying. But even though it's slowly happening, she won't last for long. But there is a way to stop this. That's why she needs your help!" my father explained to me._

_I nodded. "What do I need to do?" I asked._

_My father smiled. "There is a rare sword, called Oceania. You must help her find it. It is the only way. The sword is hidden, high in the mountains. A small cave, is where it resides. Once you have found it, Shadow is the only one who may enter at first. Once she has the sword in her grasp, the next piece of the puzzle will be given to you. Good luck my son. And good bye." my father said._

_Then he disappeared from sight and I woke up._

I quickly sat up, knowing that, that was not some weird dream. That was real and my friend needed my help. I grabbed what little I had and headed for the Jade Palace.

I ran as fast as I could, not stopping for a moment. I soon made it to the bottom of the steps. I stopped for a moment, to catch my breath, then I took off running again, taking the steps, two at a time.

After a little bit, I made it to the top. I wasn't sure if the others would remember me or not, so as soon as I was inside, I jumped up into the rafters and ran along on all fours.

After a bit of running, I heard talking and quiet foot steps. I hurried along and saw Po, the Five and Master Shifu walking along. I watched as they walked into the Kitchen/Dining Room area.

Once inside, they greeted three different Tigers. It was Tigress, Silver and Blaze. The three Tigers were making breakfast.

Everyone greeted them, and sat down at the table, while Po went to help the Tigers. I smiled when I saw Leon walk into the room.

"Hey dude!" Mantis said.

"How's Shadow?" Monkey asked.

Leon smiled. "She's on the mend, it seems. She's pretty sick right now, so Shawna said she should get some rest." Leon explained.

Everyone nodded and then Silver and Blaze bounced over and sat down on either side of their father. Leon smiled down at them, while Tigress and Po passed out bowls to everyone, that were filled with noodles.

They all dug in happily, and I knew I needed to show myself. I pulled my dagger, from my belt and threw it at the table. It sunk deep into the middle of the table, causing everyone to jump up and get into their fighting stances.

I chuckled and said, "Well Tigress, you certainly are as quick on your feet, as the last I saw you!"

Tigress slowly dropped her fists, as she thought of who I could be. I jumped down from the rafters and grinned. That's when everyone recognized me.

"Chris!" they all cried out, in a mixture of shock and happiness.

I smiled, and was tackled to the ground by the fuzz balls, Silver and Blaze. I laughed a little when they got off me and I was swarmed with questions.

"One at a time!" I said, holding my paws up in surrender.

"What are you doing here, Chris? We thought you were joined up with the army!" Tigress exclaimed.

I laughed. "I am, but I'm on a slight leave right now. And I'm here, because of Shadow!" I explained.

They all looked up me funny. "What do you mean, Chris?" Leon asked, worried.

"I know that she's dying, Leon. And I know what can save her!" I said.

"Wait, you know about it too?" a Cheetah, whom I did not know, asked.

"Yeah! My father came to me and told me about the sword, that can save her. And where to find it!" I explained.

The Cheetah's eyes grew wide in shock and excitement. "Come on, we've gotta tell Shadow!" she exclaimed.

But an older male Cheetah placed his paw on her shoulder and said, "Shawna already said she needs to rest. Let's wait a bit!"

The female Cheetah sighed and nodded her head. "Yes father." she replied quietly.

I nodded, but I knew we couldn't wait _to _long. "Alright, but we need to tell her soon, so she can get going on her quest!" I said.

Leon turned and glared at me. "Shadow is _not _leaving the Jade Palace. Not in her condition!" he snarled.

I knew how worried he must be about his wife. But I also knew Shadow needed that sword.

"Alright, calm down Leon. At least wait until you've heard the whole story!" I said.

Tigress walked over and gently laid a paw on his shoulder. He sighed deep and nodded.

"Why don't you join us for breakfast, Chris. Then we can see if Shadow's ready to talk!" Tigress suggested.

I nodded, as my stomach growled. Everyone laughed and we all walked into the Dining Room area. I sat down at the table and looked around.

'_And it's off on another adventure!' _I thought, with a smile on my face...

**OK, there's the next chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it. And I hope you'll all check out SiberianTiger45's stories. They're amazing and he's always got a twist to them. So yeah, until the next chapter, check him out and please don't forget to review! So yeah, later!**


	25. Fights, Fears and Plans!

**Alrighty, here is the next chapter. WHOO! I finally got the time and finally felt half well enough to WRITE it. hope you all enjoy it! And now I'm gonna hush and let ya read!**

_Chapter twenty five: Fights, Fears and Plans!_

Chris sat down with everyone and enjoyed a good, well deserved breakfast. He could hear the others talking, but didn't join in that much.

He was still thinking about what his father had told him about Shadow. He was worried for his friend and he knew that Leon wouldn't want her leaving. He wasn't sure if he could get Leon to understand how badly Shadow needed this sword.

After a while, they finished their meal, then Leon and his cubs took Chris and Azure to see Shadow. They got to the door and Leon opened it, only to find that Shadow wasn't in bed. In fact, wasn't in the room at all!

Silver and Blaze began to whimper quietly, worried about their mother. Leon shook his head and knelt down in front of his cubs.

"Alright, Ad'ika's. Go find mama!" Leon said.

The twin cubs grinned and took off running down the hall. The three older cats took off after them and saw them run to the Outside Training Ground. The two cubs slid to a halt, when they spotted their mother.

Shadow was standing on a tall pole, that was about twenty five feet off the ground. She would switch her feet every once in a while and she seemed very calm.

Then Leon, Chris and Azure caught up with them. Chris and Azure smiled, while Leon was slightly annoyed that Shadow was out of bed.

"Yo Shadow!" Chris called out.

Shadow swiveled her ears around, then her eyes flashed open and she spun around, to face them.

"Chris?!" she exclaimed.

Then she lost her balance and fell backwards, with a startled scream. Leon took off running and jumped up and gently caught Shadow and landed lightly on the ground, still cradling Shadow in his arms.

Shadow had her arms wrapped tightly around his neck and half buried her face into his chest. She was still slightly on edge and that fall was not something she had been expecting.

She looked up at Leon and he glared down at her with an angry expression on his face. He slowly walked towards the others.

"What were you doing out of bed?" Leon asked quietly.

Shadow glanced away and replied, "I needed some time alone, is all."

Leon sighed deeply and nodded once. He walked to the others and Shadow smiled at them.

"Are you alright, Shadow?" Azure quickly asked, while Silver and Blaze ran over and stared up worriedly at their mother.

Shadow nodded and the three smiled. Then Shadow turned to Chris, who had a smirk plastered on his face.

"Well, well, well. Looks like you're still getting yourself into trouble, are you not?" he asked.

Shadow rolled her eyes and shook her head, but she let out a quiet chuckle as she did so. Chris laughed as well, then they headed back to Leon and Shadow's room.

"Ad'ika's, why don't you go find uncle Po and aunt Tigress, and ask them to teach you a new move!" Shadow suggested.

The two cubs nodded excitedly and took off running. Leon walked into his and Shadow's room and gently set his wife down on the bed.

Shadow sat up and leaned against the head of the bed and smiled at the others. Chris and Azure smiled, while Leon glared. Shadow knew he was mad at her for getting out of bed, but she needed to get out and just have some quiet time to herself.

"Alright, I'm sure you're wondering why I'm here, right Shad?" Chris asked.

Shadow nodded and said, "I am, but I get the feeling I already know." she said, glancing down at her lap.

Azure smiled and walked over to her and sat down next to her.

"You feel up to talking?" she asked.

Shadow looked up and nodded. Azure smiled and nodded once. Then Chris stepped forward.

"Alright, so we all know about the sword, right?" Chris asked.

Shadow and Azure nodded, while Leon watched them with a curious expression. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he knew he wasn't going to let anything happen to Shadow. Not if he could help it.

"Yeah, we know about it. What do _you _know about it?" Shadow asked.

Chris smiled and said, "My father came to me and told me where to find it. He said that it's in a cave up in the high mountains and you Shadow, are the only one who can get the sword at first. When you have it, the next clue will be given to us."

Shadow nodded, then said, "Not 'us', Chris; me. I'm going and no one is coming with me!"

Chris and Azure were about to argue, when Leon stepped forward. He looked at Shadow and she could see he was cross, but the stern look on his face.

"Uh, if you guys don't mind, I need to talk to my wife. _Alone_!" he said.

Chris and Azure looked at each other, very confused, but nodded and quietly walked from the room and down the hallway. Both decided to talk some more, over a snack.

They walked into the Kitchen and Chris sat down at the table, while Azure searched around and found two plates and some almond cookies.

They set down and smiled at each other. Then they began to talk about this sword and what each of them knew about it.

*Leon and Shadow's room*

Shadow watched as Leon paced the floor in front of her. She knew he was upset about something and she figured that _something _was her. Leon shook his head and stopped to stand in front of her.

Shadow cocked her head and said, "Le I-"  
"You are _not_ leaving the Jade Palace, to go after this sword, Shadow. And that is final!" Leon said, cutting her off.

Shadow narrowed her eyes and said, "I'm going. And that's that! You can't stop me. You don't understand, I have to do this!"  
"No Shadow! Your in no condition to go running off on some quest!" Leon said, stubbornly.

Shadow felt her temper raising. "So, you would rather me _die_?!" she snapped.

Leon looked at her in surprise. "No Shad, that's not-"  
"Leon, if I don't go and find this sword, I am going to die! Do you really want me out of your life so badly, you'd let me die a slow, hard death?!" Shadow cried, almost in tears.

Leon could see how hurt she was. He stepped forward and said, "Shadow, sweetie, listen to-"  
"I'm _through _listening! If you want me dead so badly, then kill me yourself!" Shadow screamed, as tears rolled down her face.

Leon knew he had pushed her to hard. She always seemed to be on edge, more now, then normally. And this time, he had pushed her _to_ hard.

Shadow turned away from him and cried quietly. Leon hung his head sadly and walked over to her. He sat next to her on the bed and gently wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

He could hear her sobbing softly. He gently rubbed her shoulder. She slowly turned and looked at her husband, with tear stains on her face.

He did his best to smile, even though he feared greatly for her life. She could see the fear shone brightly in his eyes and she knew he was fearful for her.

She hiccupped and wrapped her arms around him and buried her face into his chest and sobbed. Leon closed his eyes and held his wife close, as she cried into his chest. He knew she was as scared as he was.

"I'm so sorry, Shad'ika. I just can't lose you again. I lost you for almost twenty five years, I've almost lost you to Tanis, twice! I can't lose you one more time." Leon whispered in her ear.

She nodded softly and Leon gently rubbed his head against hers. Shadow purred softly and smiled.

"I know, Le. But it's the only way. I _have_ to get that sword." she replied.

Leon sighed. "I'm sorry Shadow, but I can't let you leave. You're in no condition to be running off on some quest and you know it!" he said.

Shadow sighed. "But Leon. There's no other way!"  
"Shadow, you can't leave. We can go and get the sword for you!" Leon said.

Shadow pulled away from him and shook her head sadly. "You heard Chris. I have to get it on my own. You can't get it." she said.

As much as Leon didn't want to admit it. He was afraid she was right. There was nothing he could do. She had to do this on her own.

"Well, if you're going, I'm coming with you!" Leon said.

Shadow shook her head. "No, I'm not letting anyone come with me. This is _my_ journey, not yours and the others!" she said.

Leon looked at her. He knew she wouldn't want them coming. But he could also see how tired she was. He could see it in her eyes.

"Look, how about we talk about this later. You really need to rest right now!" Leon said.

Shadow knew he was right and slowly nodded. Then she smiled and leaned forward and kissed Leon. After a moment, she slowly pulled away from him, smiling. He gently ran a paw along her cheek and she rubbed the side of her face against his paw and purred.

Then Leon helped her lay back and tucked her in gently. He bent down and lightly kissed her forehead, then turned and walked out. Shadow smiled, then slowly closed her eyes and fell to sleep.

For the rest of the day, Shadow stayed in her room. She didn't like it, but she knew she needed her rest. For she had a plan!

While she was resting, Chris and Azure explained to everyone else, what was going on and what needed to be done, if Shadow was going to make it.

Everyone was very worried that Shadow wouldn't be able to make the journey and Leon was stuck on her staying at the Jade Palace. At one point, Leon got very angry about it.

*Dining Hall*

"Shadow is _not _leaving!" Leon growled angrily.

Chris, Azure, the Five and Po all sat around the table, trying to convince him to let her go. Master Shifu could sense that Leon was very upset, so he took the twin cubs to go do some training with him.

"Leon, we'll all go with her. She _has_ to have this sword!" Viper said, trying to calm the furious Tiger down some.

But Leon continued to pace back and forth quickly. He was very angry. He didn't want to think of Shadow having to leave the safety of the Jade Palace. He's almost lost her so many times. He couldn't lose her again.

"No, Shadow is staying here!" he said, stubbornly.

Chris had kept quite the whole time, listening to them argue. Then he couldn't take it anymore. He pushed back his chair, got to his feet and sauntered over to Leon.

Leon looked up at him, only for Chris to punch him in the face. Leon stumbled backwards into the wall, then he fell to the floor. He held his face and glared up at Chris.

"Leon, get a grip! If Shadow doesn't get that sword, she is going to _DIE_!" Chris yelled.

Leon held back an angry growl at what Chris had done, only because he knew Chris was right and that he had that punch coming. Leon got to his feet, still holding a paw to his face.

"Alright. She can go, _only _if we go with her!" Leon said reluctantly.

The others nodded in agreement. But what they didn't know was Shadow was standing outside the door, listening to every word they said. She knew that for her plan to work, she would have to execute it tonight.

She quietly made her way to her room and grabbed her black and blue bag. She filled it with different things she'd need and shoved it up under the bed. Then she grabbed a book and crawled back into bed, to make it seem like she had been resting for a while.

*Later that evening*

Everyone had slowly settled down and was heading for their own rooms, Leon walked into his room and saw that Shadow was still up, finishing her book. She looked up at Leon and flashed a smile.

"Well, what's a pretty thing like you, still doing awake?" Leon teased.

Shadow rolled her eyes and replied, "Last time I checked, big girls don't _have _a bedtime!"

Leon laughed, then slipped his vest off and crawled into bed next to Shadow. Shadow put her book down on her nightstand and laid back in bed. Leon blew out the candle in their room and laid back as well. He rolled over to face Shadow and smiled.

"Today we talked things over and we're going to let you go get that sword" Leon said.

Shadow turned to face him, a broad smile on her face. She thought they had changed their minds and were letting her go on her own.

"But... we're all coming with you." Leon finished.

Shadow sighed and frowned slightly. Leon reached over and gently ran his paw along her cheek.

"I love you _very_ much, Shad'ika. I won't let you do this alone!" he said.

She smiled and nodded. Then Leon leaned over and kissed her cheek. Shadow smiled, then turned and brought her lips to his. They stayed there for a moment, before Shadow pulled away and smiled.

"I love you too, Leon!" she whispered.

Leon smiled and rubbed his head against hers, causing them both to purr in unison. Then the two felines settled down for a good nights sleep.

*Later that night*

Shadow rolled over and slowly forced her eyes open. She knew it was time. She looked over at her husband, who was still sleeping soundly next to her.

She slowly and carefully crawled out of bed and quietly changed. She changed her black silk pants, to a pair of thicker cargo pants and she wore a shirt under her vest, that had sleeves that went about half way down her arms.

She walked over to the dresser and looked in the mirror. Then she slipped, a gold ring, with blue stones on it, off her finger. She turned and looked back at Leon, then back to the ring. It was her wedding ring.

Then she walked over, bent down and grabbed her bag from under the bed, she walked back to the dresser and laid a note down on it, then very gently laid her ring on top of the note.

She quietly crept over to Leon and gently kissed his cheek.

'_I will be back. I promise!'_ She thought, sad that she had to leave.

Then she quickly and quietly left the room. She walked very quietly along the hall, then stopped at one room. She sighed and quietly walked in.

She smiled when she saw her twin cubs sleeping peacefully in their beds. She walked over and kissed them both on their foreheads, then quietly walked out.

She sighed and silently walked out. The night air felt good to her, as she stepped out into it's coolness. She pulled her bag around her neck, so it's strap rested on her opposite shoulder.

Then she narrowed her eyes and made a running leap down the steps. She ran quickly and lightly. She felt the wind blowing hard through her fur, as she ran. And she could feel hot tears on her cheeks.

She was very upset and saddened that she had to leave. But she refused to put her family and friends into _any _sort of danger.

*The next morning*

The sun shone brightly through the window, and shined on Leon's face, causing the South Chinese Tiger to stir lightly, then slowly open his golden red eyes.

He raised a paw and shielded his eyes from the bright sun light, that shone through the window. He slowly sat up, yawned wide and stretched out.

Then he glanced over and saw Shadow's side of the bed was empty. He shook his head, thinking she had snuck out again.

He crawled out of the bed and saw her normal set of clothes hanging on the end of the bed. He cocked his head to the side, very confused.

He slipped on his vest and looked around the room. Everything seemed to be in order. Then he walked over to the dresser and looked in the mirror, smoothing out his fur with his paws.

Then he noticed Shadow's ring lying there, with a note underneath it. He picked it up and held the ring in one paw, while he read the note.

His eyes widened, and tears rolled down his face, as he finished reading it.

Then he took off running out of the room, down the hall, and out to the Training Hall, where Tigress was working on her forms. He burst through the doors, panting heavily.

"Tigress!" he screamed out.

Tigress heard her brother and jumped down from the Jade Tortoise. She knew something was wrong, by the way her little brother was acting.

"Leon, what's wrong?!" Tigress quickly asked.

Leon doubled over and put his paws on his knees, trying to catch his breath. Then he looked up at Tigress with fearful eyes. His whole body trembled, as he panted hard.

"Shadow's _GONE!_" he cried.

Tigress gasped and exclaimed, "What?!"

Leon nodded his head quickly. They both stared at each other for a moment. Both fearing the worst. But deep down they both knew why Shadow had left.

Shadow had gone after the sword that could heal her.  
And she had gone after it, all on her own.  
Or so they thought...

**And thus ends the next chapter. So, what do you think is going to happen now? Shadow has left the Jade Palace, alone. But that doesn't mean she will be taking this journey all on her own, even if she left alone. Be sure to check back soon for the next chapter and please don't forget to review!**


	26. Followers

**Alright, new chapter! WHOO! So happy to have a new one going. Alright, I'll hush up and let ya'll read!**

_Chapter twenty six: Followers_

Tigress and Leon stared at each other. Both were horribly shaken with the fact that Shadow was gone.

They were about to run off to tell the others, when Azure's father, Shujaa, ran in frantically. He had a look of pure fear on his face, the same one that Leon had.

"Azure's GONE!" he cried out fearfully.

Tigress stared at him, then at Leon. "She must have gone after Shadow!" she said.

Then the twin Tiger cubs came dashing in, followed by Lance, Kira and Shakira, who had returned with them and agreed to stay at the Jade Palace.

"Daddy, where's Chris?" Silver asked.

"Yeah! We went to wake him up and see if he would show us some boxing moves, and he wasn't there!" Blaze added in.

Leon looked at his cubs fearfully. "They've _both_ gone after Shadow..." he whispered to himself.

Tigress walked up to her brother and laid a paw on his shoulder. He jumped at her touch and spun around to face her. She could tell he was on the verge of a nervous brake down. She gently grasped his arm and led him away from the group.

"I need to talk with Leon, outside." Tigress said, leading her brother out the door.

She walked him over to the Peach Tree and sat him down on a rock. She could see him shaking and he was breathing quickly.

She laid a paw on his shoulder, he flinched and looked up at her. Tigress knew how scared her little brother must be, she feared very much for Shadow as well. Then Leon jumped to his feet and began to pace in circles.

"Leon, what are you doing?" Tigress asked.

Leon wouldn't answer her, he just continued to pace. Tigress shook her head. She knew that Leon wouldn't listen to _anyone_, not even Shadow, when he got like this.

It was like he closed himself off, from the world and had hid himself away in his own mind. And Tigress knew only two ways to get her brother to snap out of it, and she was _not _going to do, Shadow's way.

She shook her head, sauntered up to her brother and stood in front of him, so that he would stop. He looked down away from her, and wouldn't meet her eyes.

She growled in annoyance. She hated doing this to Leon, but when he dropped off the deep end, it had to be done.

She braced herself for the worse, then kneed Leon in the stomach, causing him to double over, groaning in pain. Then when he looked up at Tigress, she swung a tight fist at his face. He tumbled backwards, and came to a halt, holding his jaw. He growled and ran to attack her, but she ducked and missed his kick and followed up with a swift round house kick to his head, sending him sliding across the dirt, until he came to a stop, lying on his stomach, unmoving.

Tigress shook her head and walked over to her brother. She knelt down and gently rolled him on his side. She knew he was in bad shape from his scare with Shadow and she wished she hadn't had to do that, but Leon was stubborn at times, like her.

She gently shook her brothers shoulder, trying to wake him up. After a moment, his red-orange eyes flickered open and he sat up, holding his stomach. He looked at his big sister, confused.

"I did it again, didn't I?" Leon asked, sheepishly.

Tigress nodded. "Yeah. You _know_ I hate doing that to you." she said, staring softly at her brother.

Leon hung his head and nodded slowly. "I know. I just... I-I'm so worried about Shadow! And now Azure and Chris too." he confessed.

Tigress nodded in understanding. She knew how worried he was. Chris was a very good friend of hers, though she hadn't told many people about that. But that's another story, for another day.*

"Leon, I know you're worried and you want to help her. But panicking and closing out the world is not the way to do it." Tigress gently said.

Leon sighed and nodded. He knew his big sister was right about that, he was just so scared about his wife and now their friends as well! Leon slowly got up, and looked Tigress in the eye.

"Let's go find the others and tell them what's going on." he said.

Tigress nodded and they hurried off. They both quickly gathered the others into the Meeting Room. Everyone was asking questions and Silver and Blaze whimpered quietly, when they saw their father was upset.

Leon walked to the front of the room and held his paws up to silence them. They all looked to Leon and then everyone stole a glace around the room, and they all saw that Azure and Chris were missing. They didn't think about Shadow not being there, since she was sick.

"Everyone, something very horrible has happened." Leon announced.

Everyone began to murmur among themselves, until Leon silenced them again. They all watched him curiously and worriedly.

Then Tigress leaned towards her brother and softly whispered, "Are you going to tell them, or am I?"

Leon shook his head and replied, "I will."

Tigress nodded and stepped back. She knew this would hurt them, as much as it did her and Leon.

Leon sighed and slowly continued. "Everyone. Shadow has left the Jade Palace. As well as Azure and Chris." he explained.

Everyone broke out into an uproar. They all asked questions, such as, "what do we do?", "where could they have gone?" and "we have to bring them back!"

Leon shook his head, he knew this would happen. He just didn't know of another way to brake it to them. They continued to talk among one another, until Leon stepped forward and brought his fist down on the table, causing them all to quite down.

"Look. I know you're all upset and worried. I know that I am. But right now, I need your attention. I know that Shadow has taken off after that sword, because she left me a note. She doesn't want to put us into danger. But she also is bound to know, we're going to come after her. So we don't have time to plan, we just have to go, _now!_" Leon said.

Everyone nodded in agreement and after a moment, they all hurried off to pack. Leon saw Silver and Blaze standing in the corner, whispering to each other.

"What's up, kids?" Leon asked.

They both stopped and looked up at their father innocently.

"Oh, we're just talking about what to pack!" Silver said, while twitching his tail back and forth nervously.

Leon eyed him, since he was like Shadow, he had picked up her quirks and habits. And twitching her tail, when she was lying about something, was one of them.

"Are you _sure_ that's all?" Leon asked, in a fatherly tone.

The twin cubs smiled and nodded. "Yes daddy, that's all!" Blaze said, as her ears twitched.

Leon shook his head. That was one of _his_ habits. Blaze was so much like him and Tigress, and Silver was so much like Shadow.

He sighed and stared down at them. "Alright. If you say so. Now get a move on and pack up!" he said, while smiling at them.

They nodded, then hurried off towards their room, with sly grins on their faces. Leon shook his head. They were just like he and Shadow were as cubs.

He hurried to his room and quickly packed his things. After an hour had past, everyone had their things together and were ready to leave.

They all met outside the Hall of Heroes. All but Silver and Blaze. Leon tapped his foot impatiently, then after ten more minutes, went to find them.

He looked around and didn't see them anywhere. Then he slowly made his way to their room, with a growing sensation in the pit of his stomach, that said something was wrong. He slowly opened the door and saw their room was empty.

He looked around, with fear filled eyes. He knew what was wrong now. He turned and quickly ran to the others. He got outside and pulled to a halt, panting.

"Lance, Kira, have you seen Silver and Blaze, since they went to their room?" Leon asked quickly.

The two cubs looked at each other and shrugged. "Uh, no." Lance started.

"We haven't seen them." Kira said.

Leon felt his heart drop. Tigress looked at her brother and saw that new found fear, shone brightly in his eyes. Everyone else could see it as well. Viper slowly slithered over to him and looked up at the fearful Tiger.

"Leon, are you alright?" she gently asked.

The South Chinese Tiger tired to calm his breathing and slowly stood up straight. He looked at his friends and saw they were worried.

"I... I think Silver and Blaze have gone after the others, all on their own!" he said, fearfully.

They all gasped and Lance and Kira looked at each other in fear. They knew Silver and Blaze were hotheads, like their parents, but they never thought they would do _this_.

"Come, we must hurry! They can not have gotten far." Master Shifu said.

They all nodded and hurried off, to find their friends.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle*

Azure ran along, quickly and swiftly. She was light on her feet, as she ran. Then she pulled to a sudden stop, as a dagger sunk deep into the ground in front of her. She looked up and saw a black Panther jump down.

"What do you want, Chris? I need to find Shadow!" Azure said, when the Panther came into view.

Chris smirked and rolled his eyes. "What do you think I'm doing, sight seeing?" he asked sarcastically, as he pulled his dagger from the dirt, dusted it off and sheathed it.

Azure cocked her head to the side, then she realized that Chris was following Shadow as well. She smiled and nodded in understanding. Then they both took off running, until they heard a high pitched scream. They slid to a halt, then looked around.

"Looks like we weren't the only ones who are after Shadow!" Chris said.

He and Azure looked and saw two twin Tiger cubs. It was none other then Silver and Blaze. And they were surrounded by Croc bandits.

Silver was being held off the ground, by his vest. Blaze was being held tightly by her tail, as she tried to get to her brother. Silver tired to kick the leader, who happened to be Fung, but he was held out to far.

"Aw, look at the twin brats, how cute!" Fung mocked.

Silver growled angrily and tried to kick him again. Chris smiled from his and Azure's hiding spot among the bushes. Then he and Azure crept to either side and got ready to attack.

Then Azure jumped out and kicked the three Crocs that were around Blaze, while Chris sauntered up to Fung, who dropped Silver and backed away.

"You messed with the wrong cubs!" Chris growled in his face.

Then he balled up a fist and punched Fung under his snout and sent him flying up into the air and far off into the forest.

Then Chris looked up, when the three other Crocs went flying past. Chris turned around and saw Azure, Silver and Blaze smiling. He chuckled at the three cats.

"So, what are you two doing here?" Azure asked the cubs.

"We wanted to help our mama!" Blaze said, while Silver nodded in agreement.

"Well... alright, let's go!" Chris said.

The two cubs grinned, happy they got to help find their mama.

Then they all took off running to find Shadow and made sure she was brought home, safe and sound...

**Okay, that's that. Looks like we found out who's followed Shadow, other then everyone else. I hope you all enjoyed it and please don't forget to leave your reviews!**

_Author note:  
__*If you would like to see what happened between Chris and Tigress, check out SiberianTiger45 and his stories. They tell about Chris and Tigress, as well as things that have happened AFTER this story, somewhat. Things I didn't mention, since it hasn't happened here. So yeah, if you want to know, check out his story about Chris' past! Or better yet, check out ALL his stories!_


	27. Unknown Family

**Alright! I think I've finally gotten my act together and am starting to get back into writing! Man, I don't know what's been wrong with me, but I've just been so out of it and sick lately. Hopefully I can get all the way better soon, and get back to my writing, in between the craziness of school. OH THE HORROR! Heh, heh. Okay onto the story!**

_Chapter twenty seven: Unknown Family_

*Deep in the bamboo forest*

Shadow sprinted along on all fours, as quickly as she could, in her condition. She knew since the sun had been up for a while, her family was most likely already after her.

She knew running off on her own like this was dangerous, but she was not about to put her family and friends into jeopardy, because of her.

She continued to run, then she slowly pulled to a stop, panting heavily. She was very tired out from her run and she needed to catch her second wind.

She leaned against a tree, for support, while she caught her breath. But before she could continue onward, a blur of black came from out of no where and pinned her to the tree.

She looked around, shocked. Then she saw who it belonged to. The black Panther, Chris, sauntered up to her, with a smirk on his face.

"Now Shadow, you didn't think we'd let you run off and have all the fun without us, now did you?" he asked, tauntingly.

Shadow scrunched up her nose and growled at him, as she pulled the dagger from the tree and threw it into the dirt at his feet.

"Why are you here, Chris?" she asked, as she checked to make sure he hadn't ripped her shirt.

Thankfully he hadn't, because it was made of such a thick material, which is way she chose it. Chris rolled his eyes at that comment.

"Why do you_ think_ we're here, Shadow?" he asked.

Shadow cocked her head and repeated, "'We're'?"

Chris nodded. "Yeah, it seems these two fluff balls just_ love_ adventure, like you!" he said.

And right on que, Silver and Blaze came bounding through the bushes and pounced on their mother, hugging her tight.

Shadow held her cubs and purred softly, but she was worried and angry, that they had followed her. Then she became more angry, when Azure stepped through the bushes as well.

"You guys can't let me do this alone, can you?" Shadow asked, as she got to her feet.

The four cats shook their heads and grinned wide. Shadow sighed, defeated.

"Alright. You can come with me." she said reluctantly.

The twin fur balls, jumped for joy, while Azure smirked and Chris rolled his eyes thinking, _'duh!'_

Shadow sighed, then bent down and let Silver crawl up on her back, then she picked Blaze up into her arms and started off into the forest, followed be Azure.

Chris went to retrieve his dagger from the dirt, but when he pick it up, the tip broke off and a small piece of paper fell from inside it. He bent down, picked it up and read it.

"_Dear Chris, this is your father, and I have something very important I must tell you. Since you are reading this, it means you have taken my dagger and have gone on to follow in my footsteps, caring about others and doing what's right. But there is something you must know. You are not alone. You see, I had a brother, who took a wife, and they had a daughter. Chris, watch for one, who's fur is pure black, with a tear on her face, snow white claws and who leads one of the worlds greatest fighting groups in all of China. Find her, and find family. ~Your Father"_

Chris wasn't sure how to take the note, so he shoved it in his pocket, sheathed his broken dagger, and hurried after the three Tigers and the Cheetah.

*The Valley of Peace*

Leon led his group, which consisted of The Dragon Warrior, The Furious Five, Shakira and her two cubs. Azure's father, had agreed to stay behind with Master Shifu, just incase their friends returned home.

Leon was very worried about his wife and kids. He knew they could be in serious trouble, or they could be perfectly safe. He had no idea of how they were at the moment, but he could only hope and pray they were alright.

The group continued on, until it got to be dusk, and they stopped for a little something to eat, but they all agreed to run as long as they could through the night, much to Po's dismay.

Leon kept very quiet and everyone knew how scared and worried he was. They just knew they had to be careful with him, or he would brake down again.

After they finished, they hurried on. They wanted to cover as much ground as they could. It was getting dark, but everyone kept running.

Eventually, Lance, Kira and Po got very tired and they were forced to stop for the night, as much as Leon didn't want to. They quickly set up a small camp, and everyone was soon, fast asleep. Everyone but Leon.

He laid on the ground, staring up at the stars, wondering where his family was and if they were alright. No one knew where Tanis was, and that scared him. For all he knew, Tanis could have ambushed his family by now.

All he could do was keep going, until his family was safe in his arms again.

*The Jade Palace. Basement*

Ajani still sat down in the basement with his wrists cuffed. They had at least remembered to feed him, so he couldn't complain about that.

But he still wondered what would happen to him now. He didn't like being stuck in this stupid basement. If they didn't let him out soon, he would become claustrophobic.

Then his ears perked up, when he thought he heard someone else in the basement with him. He got to his feet, and looked around. Even though the room was dark, he could still see fairly well.

He looked around again and could see a figure hiding in the shadow's. He narrowed his eyes, trying to get a better view of who it was. Then the figure slowly began to step forward, taking on a shape. Ajani felt his hopes slowly raising.

"Tanis? Is that you?" he asked quietly.

The figure chuckled quietly. "Wrong brother." it said, in a deep voice.

Ajani's eyes went wide. "Sinat?" he asked, shakily.

The figure stepped forward, revealing a Lion, a bit shorter then Tanis, with darker tan fur, and his mane, that was closer to a brown color. And his eyes, one was a bright red, the other was a clouded gray.

He had an evil smile on his face, and he chuckled quietly. "Oh, how good it is to see you too, little brother!" Sinat said, while his eyes flashed brightly in the dark room.

Ajani slowly started to move towards him, when he felt a hard hit, to his spine. He fell to the floor, as his legs suddenly went numb, followed by the rest of his body, then everything faded to black.

*Deep in the bamboo forest*

Shadow sat, watching as her friends and cubs slept. She just couldn't seem to close her eyes. She was tired, but nothing seemed to work. She sat, leaning against a tree, looking up at the stars.

She missed Leon, Tigress and the others. But she didn't want to put them into harms way. She sat there for a moment, then she began to tremble badly and she hurt as well.

She laid down on her side, closing her eyes and curled up her legs and hugged them to her chest, to try and stop shaking so badly. After a few more minutes, her shaking calmed and the pain eased.

"Mama, are you alright?"

Shadow slowly opened her eyes and saw her twin cubs staring at her, worriedly. She slowly sat up and leaned against the tree again. Then she opened her arms, and the twin Tiger cubs hurried to her, and hugged her tight.

They snuggled up against her, and they both purred softly into their mother's fur. Shadow smiled gently down at them, as they both looked up at her, with curious expressions.

"Mama? Why are you doing this?" Blaze asked quietly.

Shadow sighed, as she stared down at her cubs. "I have to do this. If I don't... mama won't be coming back to the Jade Palace. Ever again." she whispered sadly.

Silver and Blaze snuggled closer to their mother and held her tightly. They were afraid to lose her, they had almost lost her once, they didn't want to lose her again. Finally, the twin cubs fell to sleep, resting against their mother. She gently wrapped her arms around them, and held them close.

"I promise, I will fight this, Ad'ika's." Shadow gently whispered in their ears.

Then she to finally fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.

*The next morning*

Silver and Blaze both stirred lightly and opened their bright, playful eyes. They looked up and saw their mother was still sleeping soundly, as were Chris and Azure.

They looked at each other and sly grins crossed their faces. Then they carefully crawled away from Shadow, towards Chris. They crept along on all fours, low to the ground, both of them would flick their tails to the side, every once in a while, as they snuck forward.

They quietly moved forward, then when they felt there were close enough, they pounced. They jumped onto Chris and laughed. The black Panther groaned, as he rolled over and saw the two cubs sitting on top of him.

He mentally slapped a paw to his forehead. Then he sat up and grabbed the two cubs around their waists and threw them over his shoulders. They squealed and tried to get him to put them down, but Chris just sauntered around, holding them up.

Shadow quickly woke up, when she heard her cubs, but she quietly laughed, when she saw Chris had them. Azure woke up and groggily looked around. She wasn't sure what was going on, but when she saw Chris running around, with the twin Tiger cubs flung over his shoulders, she laid back down and fell asleep again.

After a bit, Chris put them down again and they ran around the camp, laughing and chasing one another. Shadow slowly and shakily, got to her feet and walked over to Chris.

"You know, you're really good with kids. When are you gonna settle down and have cubs of your own?" she asked, with a smirk on her face.

Chris blushed slightly, when she said that and just shrugged. Shadow chuckled, and watched as Silver pounced on his sister. They both rolled around on the ground, laughing and smiling.

Shadow smiled at her kids, she worried about them, especially since they were with her on this journey, but she knew they were tough and they knew how to take care of themselves, even thought they were young.

Then they ran over to Azure and shook her awake. She sat up and rubbed her eyes sleepily. Then she stretched out and yawned wide. After a bit, they ate a quick breakfast, and set off again.

After a while of walking, they made it into a small village. They looked around, as they walked through the village. Then as they were walking around, Chris spotted a female, black Panther

He chuckled and sauntered up to her. "Well, hello there gorgeous!" he said, while smirking.

She turned her head slightly, and glared at him out of the corner of her eye. Chris tired to talk to her more, but she turned away from him. Then Chris felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around, and saw a black Jaguar, with brown patches under his eyes, stood there, growling.

"What do you think you're doing?" he snarled.

"I'm talking to the door, what's it look like, smarty?" Chris asked.

The Jaguar growled louder. "It looks like you're messing with _my_ girlfriend!" he snapped.

Then the Jaguar swung a fist at Chris' face. He sent Chris flying back, into a set of crates, causing them to splinter to pieces. Chris got up, angrily and ran at the Jaguar, and kicked his legs around from under him. Then the Jaguar grabbed Chris' ankles and pulled him down. Then they started rolling on the ground, fighting.

Shadow, Azure, Silver and Blaze ran over, as did the Jaguar's girlfriend and four other cloaked figures. Chris and the Jaguar rolled around, kicking and punching at each other. Chris hit the Jaguar, hard on his shoulder, and the Jaguar hit Chris, hard in the jaw.

Shadow and Azure ran over, as well as two of the cloaked figures, a black Wolf and a Lynx. Shadow and Azure grabbed Chris, while the Wolf and Lynx grabbed the Jaguar, and they pulled them off each other.

Chris had blood dripping from his mouth, and the Jaguar was clutching his shoulder. Then the female Panther walked up.

"What in the world is- Shadow?" she asked, when her eyes fell upon the White Tiger.

Shadow cocked her head, then slowly smiled. "Tanani!" she cried out happily.

Tanani removed her hood, as did the rest of the Shadow Ninja's. Chris wiped his mouth, with the back of his paw, then he noticed Tanani and remembered what the note has said.

'_One who's fur is pure black, with a tear on her face.'_

Chris looked closer at Tanani and saw a white tear drop on her face. That's when he realized something.

"Tanani, is it? Can I see your dagger?" Chris asked, motioning towards her belt.

She watched him suspiciously, as she carefully pulled it from her belt. Chris looked at it in shock.

"Where did you get that from?" he asked.

"I-it was my fathers." she said.

Chris slowly began to smile. Then he pulled his own dagger out, and showed it to her. It looked exactly like hers did, down to the smallest details.

"Tanani, your father was my fathers brother. Which means... we're cousins!" Chris said.

Tanani's eyes went wide, as she looked at him. The rest of the Shadow Ninja's, Shadow, Azure, and the twin cubs also watched shocked.

Tanani and Chris were an unknown family...

**OHHH! What's this, got us some unknown family members here! Goodness, I'm sure no one saw THAT coming, hehe. Well, I hope you all liked it and looks like the Shadow Ninja's have settled down in a village themselves, but what do they do there? Guess we'll find out next chapter. So yeah, hope you all enjoyed it and please don't forget to leave a review!**


	28. Old Friends

**Okay, I finally got over my writers block for another story, so maybe now I can get to work on other stories too. Hehe. Okay, here is the next chapter, I hope that you all like it!**

_Chapter twenty eight: Old Friends_

Tanani stood staring at the black Panther, Chris. She couldn't believe he was her cousin. Then she remembered her father once talking about his brother, his name was Conner and he had a son.

But she couldn't recall his son's name. But she did remember her father and brother had matching daggers. And she had her fathers, meaning this must truly be her cousin, unless he was lying to her.

She took a step forward, keeping her eyes on him, in case he tried something.

"Well, I don't think I caught your name." she slowly started.

"Chris." the black Panther replied.

"Alright, Chris, what was your fathers name?" Tanani asked.

Chris felt his face getting hot, as he stared down at the ground, slightly embarrassed.

"His... his name was... Connor." he whispered, so quietly, that only Tanani caught it. Then he added, "and I'd like it, if that stayed between us."

Tanani nodded in understanding. She could barely believe it. He really was family. She remembered how she felt, when she lost the only blood family she had. The Shadow Ninja's had become her family, but now she had blood family again.

She slowly walked forward, until she was just inch's away from Chris. Then she did something, that her team, rarely saw her do. She hugged Chris.

Chris stood there, not sure how to take it, but since she was family, he let her hug him. When she pulled away, she had tears on her face.

"For nearly thirty years, I've been without related family, in that time, my team and I have grown as close as any family. But I've waited for so long, to find someone from my family again." she said, as she wiped away the tears from her face.

Chris had, in a sense, felt the same way. But he had also had his family for a bit longer. But now, he had blood family again, as well.

After a moment, Shadow stepped forward and laid a trembling paw on Tanani's shoulder. Tanani turned and could see pain shining bright in Shadow's deep blue eyes.

"Tanani, as much as I hate to interrupt this, I really need some place, that I can lie down for a bit." she said, shakily.

Tanani turned to face her friend, worriedly. "What's wrong?" she asked, quickly.

"My sickness... it's back." Shadow whispered sadly.

Tanani's eyes went wide, in fear. But she quickly nodded and snapped her fingers. The rest of the Shadow Ninja's ran over, as did Azure, Silver and Blaze.

"Come with us, we'll take you to our home." Tanani said.

Shadow nodded, and then the Shadow Ninja's led them towards their new home. Silver and Blaze hung near to Azure, because Shadow had told them to, otherwise, they would be gripping their mothers paws.

Shadow walked towards to back, with Chris. She was very dizzy and didn't feel well. Chris stayed near her, to keep an eye on her.

Then after a bit of walking, Shadow's knees buckled under her, and she fell to the ground, with a cry of pain. Silver and Blaze heard this and ran over to her.

"Mama, are you alright?!" they both quickly asked.

Shadow did her best to smile at them. "I'm okay, Ad'ika's. Just stay near, Azure." she told them.

They nodded sadly, and did as they were told. Chris tried to get Shadow to her feet, but her legs wouldn't hold her upright.

"Come on, Shad, let me carry you." Chris said.

"I can walk, just fine." Shadow argued with Chris.

The Panther rolled his eyes, when she said that, after her fifth attempt to get up.

"Shadow, you can't walk, just suck up and admit it, so we can get you inside!" Chris said.

Shadow hung her head and nodded. Then Chris slipped one arm under her knees and the other around her back and gently lifted her off the ground.

Once he had a good grip on her, he quickly caught up with the others. Tanani led everyone through a large alley way, then when they came out the other side, they saw a large house.

"This is our home." Tanani said, motioning towards the building.

It was well made and very large, and each of the Shadow Ninja's ran towards different parts of the building, and disappeared through secret doors, then after a minute, the main door opened and the twin Cheetah's, Sol and Sola stood there, smiling and motioning the others inside.

They all walked in and looked around. It was very cozy area, perfect for the Shadow Ninja's, and slightly familiar to Shadow.

"The layout of our home may seem very familiar to you, Shadow." Tanani said.

"Yeah, because it's the same layout of Tanis' old hideout." the black Wolf, Fin explained.

Shadow cocked her head to the side. "Why did you make the layout like that?" she asked.

The Shadow Ninja's all looked at each other, thoughtfully.

"Well, we were raised there, it was the place we all grew up in. We figured that our permanent home should be something that we all were used to and all. Of course, we've added on and have put things that fit us, into the building." Tanani explained.

Silver and Blaze looked around curiously, as did Azure. Azure was some what familiar with it, and after a moment, it hit her.

"Shadow, I recognize this layout too!" she said.

Shadow cocked her head, then she understood where she was going with this.

"You mean, if you recognize it and I recognize it. Then Tanis took us to his _old_ hideout!" Shadow said, as everything fell into place.

"And also meaning, that's most likely where he'll be hiding now!" Azure added.

But then Shadow remembered something. "But how could he be there? Remember, it caved in when we all were escaping." Shadow said.

Azure nodded. "He's got to be somewhere and we have to stop him, before he causes more trouble." the young Cheetah said.

Then Strak walked up, still holding his shoulder. "Well... there is much more to the hideout, then the top part. Perhaps, after you've gotten some rest Shadow, we can explain it better." he said.

Shadow nodded, then Tanani showed them to one of their guest rooms. Chris gently sat Shadow down on the bed and saw her trembling lightly.

"You get some rest, Shadow. We'll keep an eye on Silver and Blaze!" Chris reassured the White tigress.

Shadow slowly nodded and settled down. Silver and Blaze ran over, and stood beside her, neither of them, wanting to leave her side.

"Go on, sweeties. I'll be fine." Shadow said, as she smiled at her cubs.

The twins sadly nodded and followed Chris and Tanani out the door, while Shadow slowly closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

Chris could see that the cubs were worried about their mother, as was he. But at the moment, there was nothing else they could do, but let her sleep.

Chris could see Tanani watching him. He was sure she wanted to know more about him, but they all needed some time to settle down for a bit.

Sol and Sola started chatting with Azure, and the three seemed to get along well, since they were all Cheetah's.

Silver and Blaze both sat down in the corner, playing some game, where they would clap their paws together, then against each others, and with each round, they would go faster and faster, until one of them hit the other, causing them both to burst out into giggles.

Chris pulled up a chair and sat himself down. He looked over and saw Fin and the Lynx, Wen tending to Strak's shoulder.

Strak looked over at Chris and nodded to him, respectfully. Chris returned his nod, then turned and touched his lip. He winced and pulled his paw away, to see it had a bit of a red tone to it.

He rolled his eyes, he couldn't believe he had let that Jaguar get a good hit on him.

Then Tanani walked out, holding a damp rag in her paws. She sat down across from Chris and held the rag out to him.

"I didn't think I should let my cousin sit in the corner, bleeding." she said, smirking.

Chris stared at her, then took the rag, and held it to his mouth. "Thanks." he muttered.

Tanani smiled at him, then moved her chair closer. "So, is Connor really-"

"Yes, and I don't want that getting around." Chris said.

Tanani nodded, and Chris saw Azure staring at him, curiously. He looked away, not wanting to talk about his dad to anyone at the moment.

Then he looked over and saw Silver and Blaze yawning. He and Tanani both chuckled and walked over to them. The two cubs looked up at them, with sleep filled eyes.

"Alright you two, bed time." Chris said.

"But we're not... sleepy..." Silver said, while yawning, causing Blaze to yawn as well.

Tanani chuckled, then bent down in front of them and smiled gently. "Come on you two, why don't I take you to your mama's room and let you sleep in there, with her." she suggested.

Both cubs smiled at that idea and jumped to their feet. Azure walked over, while Sol and Sola went to grab extra blankets for the cubs, since they heard Tanani's plan.

"These are your rooms." Tanani said to Chris and Azure, while motioning to the rooms on either side of Shadow's room.

The two nodded and smiled. Then Sol and Sola returned and handed Silver and Blaze their blankets. The two cubs smiled, then walked with Azure into their mothers room.

They both crawled up on the bed, next to Shadow, who was still sound asleep. They both curled up into tight balls, next to her and let Azure cover them, with the warm blankets.

The twins smiled up at her, then snuggled down and fell to sleep. Azure chuckled softly, then turned and walked out.

"If you need us, we're just up the stairs, and our doors are marked." Tanani said.

Azure and Chris thanked her, then retired to their own rooms. All through the night, everyone slept peacefully. Well, everyone but Shadow.

Her sleep was dream filled, and very frightful dreams is what they were.

*Shadow's dreamscape*

_Shadow raced forward, trying to brake through the darkness that had fallen around her. She could hear cries and screams and she knew they belonged to her family. She could hear them screaming out for her._

"_Mama!" her young cubs cried out._

"_Shadow, help!" Leon screamed._

_Shadow raced forward, towards her families screams. Then suddenly, the floor opened up under her and she plummeted down, down, down, into the darkness._

_After a bit of time passed, the White tigress slowly forced her eyes open, to find herself in chains. She was on her knees, her arms were held up and away from her body, by long, thick chains._

_She weakly raised her head, to see her family lying still on the floor, around them, the tiles on the floor, were stained a dark red, and standing over them, was none other then Tanis, holding a blood covered dagger, tightly in his paws._

_He slowly brought his dark red and gold eyes to Shadow's blue ones, and saw the horror that filled them. Shadow slowly met his eyes and saw nothing, but pure evilness._

_The horrid Lion let a smile cross his lips, as suddenly the wind picked up, water drops stayed perfectly still in mid-air, and flames danced around his feet._

_He looked at the dagger in his paws, then slowly made his way towards Shadow, stepping over the bodies of her family, as if they were nothing but stones, that blocked his path._

_He sauntered up to Shadow, with an evil smile on his face. He gripped the dagger tightly in his paws. He stopped in front of her, and brought the dagger to her throat._

_She growled at him, then without a seconds warning, he threw the dagger into the ground, and snarled in her face. He bared his white fangs, and let his smile return._

"_You know, I forget how pretty you really are, Shadow." Tanis snickered._

_Shadow let out a furious and threatening growl. "You stay away from me!" she snarled._

_Tanis chuckled, then backed away from her, and began to walk in circles around her._

"_Well, now that I've taken your families powers, it will be simple to take yours too. Now, how shall I go about that?" Tanis asked, tauntingly._

_Shadow watched him, as best she could. She hated knowing the fact that her family was dead, there was nothing she could do or could have done, and that she was next on Tanis' list._

_Suddenly, Shadow felt a cold chill run down her spin, as Tanis' claws glazed the back of her neck._

"_You know, I've always wanted to test out how your neck and weakness works. Perhaps I should just go ahead and test my theory's right now." Tanis growled, as he wrapped his claws around the back of her neck._

_Shadow looked to her family, as tears streamed down her face. She knew that if Tanis had his way, she wouldn't be walking away from this, alive._

"_Any last words, Shadow?" Tanis whispered in her ear._

_She closed her eyes and replied, "At least I'll never have to see your ugly mug again."_

_Tanis growled angrily, and tightened his grip. "It's been fun, Shadow." he snarled._

_Then he let lose his most powerful lightening attack he could, causing Shadow to scream in horrible pain. Pain from not only losing her family, but of losing them to Tanis._

*Real time*

Shadow's horrid screams, echoed through the room, causing her cubs to awake with a jolt. They both saw her thrashing about, screaming, tears streaming from her eyes.

They both knew she was dreaming, and it was a _bad_ one.

"Silver, go get Chris and Azure!" Blaze cried, as she crawled over to Shadow, and shook her, trying to wake her from her awful nightmare.

Silver leapt from the bed, and ran out the door, but he bumped into Chris, when he did. He looked up at him, with fear in his eyes.

"Silver, what's going on?" Chris asked.

Silver panted fearfully. "Mama's having a nightmare and she won't wake up!" he said, quickly.

Chris nodded, then Azure came out, rubbing her eyes. "What's going on?" she asked, sleepily.

"Go get Tanani and the others, Shadow's gone into a nightmare and she won't wake up!" Chris quickly explained.

Azure nodded and dashed up the stairs, as fast as her legs would carry her, while Silver and Chris ran back into Shadow's room.

She was still screaming, and Blaze had to be careful, to make sure Shadow didn't hit her, by mistake. Blaze saw her brother and Chris run in and she jumped down from the bed.

"We have to make it stop!" she cried, as tears welled up in her eyes.

Chris wasn't sure what he should do, to get Shadow to wake up.

"Okay, stand back you two." Chris said, to Silver and Blaze.

They both nodded and stepped back. Chris was sure this would hurt Shadow, but it _had _to be better, then whatever she was dreaming about.

He got into the position he needed to be in, then he elbowed Shadow hard in her stomach, causing her to yelp loudly, then moan in pain. But she still remained trapped in her dream.

Chris was stunned it didn't work. And the twins were shocked he even did it in the first place.

"Chris!" they both cried out.

He turned to them and shrugged helplessly. "What? I figured that would work!" he confessed.

The cubs didn't want their mother to be hurt, but they _did_ want her out of that nightmare. They looked up, when Azure and the Shadow Ninja's ran in. By the looks on their faces, Chris knew that Azure had filled them in, as best she could.

"How do we wake her?" Sola asked, worriedly.

Chris looked down at Shadow, and could see fear, etched into her face. He had an idea of what he could do, but he knew it would hurt them both.

But it hurt to see her like this, and he knew this was his only option left. He walked over to Shadow and laid his right paw on her forehead. She flinched at his touch, and began to whimper quietly. Silver and Blaze looked at each other, worriedly.

'_I hate to do this to you Shadow, but it has to be done.'_ Chris thought.

Then he closed his eyes and concentrated hard. He suddenly felt a sharp shocking pain, running through his body. Shadow began to scream again, as the shock hit her.

Chris could feel the shock running through him, but kept on it. He could hear Shadow screaming and sobbing. He knew this would hurt her, but he couldn't let her stay in that nightmare.

He continued to carefully shock her, until he felt his energy completely drop and he stumbled backwards. Shadow's screams, slowly quieted, as she laid there whimpering and moaning.

"D-did it work?" Chris asked, weakly.

"Yes, she's calming down." Tanani said, breathing a sigh of relief.

Chris slowly nodded, then stumbled again, and fell to the floor, unconscious from the sudden loss of energy. Tanani let out a worried gasp, and knelt down beside him, gently shaking him.

While she did that, Silver and Blaze ran over to their mother and crawled up on the bed again. Shadow had calmed down, until she was just softly whimpering from the pain, and barely trembled in fear.

"Is Chris okay?" Azure asked.

Tanani nodded. "Whatever he did, must have wiped him out. But I think he should be alright." she said.

The other nodded. Silver and Blaze looked between Chris and their mother, with fear filled eyes.

"Fin, Wen, I need your help, to get Chris back to his room." Tanani said.

The two nodded, and helped her get the black Panther back to his bed. Azure walked over to Shadow and could see she still shook in fear.

'_Oh Shadow...'_ she sadly thought.

Silver and Blaze sat cross-legged next to their mother, staring at her worriedly. They were scared, that something would happen to her, and they couldn't bare to think of that.

"Come on you two. You need to sleep now." Azure said.

The two cubs looked up at her sadly, neither of them wanted to. Azure thought for a moment, of how to get them to sleep, then she remembered something her mother had done to help her sleep, when she was little.

She looked around and saw a chair in the corner. She grabbed it, and pulled it close to the bed.

"Alright, lay down and I'll do something my mama used to do, to help me sleep." she said to the twins.

The two cubs looked at each other, then nodded and laid down. Azure smiled, then she reached over and gently rubbed their backs. The twin cubs smiled and purred softly, then after a little bit, they were both sound asleep.

Azure smiled softly, as she carefully laid their blankets on them. Then she turned to Sol, Sola and Strak.

"I'll stay here with them, you guys go get some rest. We'll figure out what happened tomorrow!" she said.

The three Shadow Ninja's nodded and walked out of the room. Azure plopped herself back in the chair and settled down for the rest of the night.

The questions of, what happened? What did Shadow see? What did Chris do to her? They all swirled around in her mind. But she knew they wouldn't be answered until tomorrow.

After a bit, she slowly closed her eyes, and fell back to sleep. A smile gently crossed her lips, when a sweet dream of her and her mother appeared in her mind.

She sighed, and let the dream gently lull her into a deep, peaceful sleep...

**Okay, that is the next chapter. What did you think? I really tried to put good detail into it and the idea for Shadow's nightmare, came from myself having nightmares a lot lately, so the idea for that came from myself, so yeah. But please, PLEASE review what you thought about the chapter. Even you silent readers or guests, I REALLY would love and want to know what you thought. So please, leave a review, doesn't take you very long to write it out and it always makes me smile. So please do. And yeah, I hope you all enjoyed it and yeah. Until the next time, later all!**


	29. Untold Secrets

**Okay, after an extremely hard, over emotional week for me, I finally got some time to write. So yeah, I'm sorry for taking so long, and I really hope you all like it!**

_Chapter twenty nine: Untold Secrets_

*The next morning*

Azure slowly opened her eyes, to see the sun, shining through the window. She rubbed her eyes, then stretched her arms out and yawned wide.

She looked over, and saw the twin fur balls, snuggled up against their mother, as if they were protecting her. Azure remembered when she was a cub, and would do that too.

She was determined to make sure that the cubs kept their mother, unlike she had. After watching the cubs sleep for a while, the young Cheetah got to her feet and walked out of the room.

She walked over to the table, at the side of the room, and sat down. She rested her elbows on it, and her head in her paws. She was worried about her friends, and also about her father.

She could only imagine how scared and worried he must be about her. But she knew deep down, she had to help Shadow and that was that.

She felt in her heart, it was the right thing to do. After a few minutes, her ears perked up, when she heard a door open. She looked and saw the black Panther, Tanani, walking out of Chris' room.

She joined Azure at the table, and they could see that the other hadn't had much sleep that night.

"How's Shadow doing?" Tanani asked, after a moment of silence.

"She seems to be resting easy. Silver and Blaze are very worried about her." Azure said. "How's Chris?"  
"He seems stable. I don't know what he did, but he seems to be alright. We'll know better once he wakes up." Tanani explained.

"Once they _both_ wake up." Azure added in.

Tanani nodded. "I'm with you on that one." she said, with a hint of worry to her tone.

Then the black Panther leaned back in her chair, and stared at Azure, curiously. Azure cocked her head and glared.

"What?" she asked.

"Oh, I'm just wondering how a young Cheetah like you, ended up with Shad, is all!" Tanani said, with a chuckle.

Azure smiled. "Oh, where do I begin?" she asked, with a smile on her face.

Then she told Tanani her long story; how her mother had died; her father had become seriously depressed over it; he had been kidnapped; she tried to find him and had been kidnapped herself; had been thrown in a cell with Shadow; then after fighting and escaping, watched as Shadow's son, Silver, had been brought back; but Shadow had taken to her sickness again; then about her mother coming to her, and telling how she could help Shadow; how Chris had come along, with more information on how to help Shadow; Shadow had taken off; she had followed her; ran into Chris; ran into the twin cubs; they found Shadow; then they all came into the village, where the Shadow Ninja's lived, and that about caught Tanani up on her life story.

"Wow. Sounds hard! I understand losing your parents, I really do. But it's good to see you fought through it." Tanani said.

Azure bowed her head to the Panther. "Thank you, Tanani." she said.

Tanani nodded and smiled at her. "Anytime." she replied.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle. Location; Unknown*

A door slowly opened up, into a pitch black room, and two figures slowly advanced into it, single file. They walked over, and stood watching another figure, lying on a bed.

The tallest of the three figures, let an evil smile cross his lips.

"Well, it seems I'm not as rusty on my nerve techniques as I thought I was." he said, as he looked over at the figure standing beside him.

The other figure let a smile come up to his face, as well. "Yes brother, you are doing quite well, re-capturing our own brother, was quite smart. Quite smart indeed, Tanis." the figure said, in a gruff voice.

Tanis chuckled darkly. "Yes Sinat, I just hope Ajani will agree with you as well, when he finally comes to." he said, through bared fangs.

Sinat bared his pure white fangs as well, as they both watched their little brother, Ajani, and waited for him to wake up, so they could all plot their revenge.

*Else where in the bamboo jungle*

After hiking through the forest all day, and half the night, everyone from the Jade Palace was still, not surprisingly, sound asleep. The sun had already shone it's face through the trees, but that didn't bother the Jade Palace family. They were all sound asleep. All but one, South Chinese Tiger.

Tigress sat up, watching as her friends slept. She had woken up, the moment the sun shone through the trees, out of total habit.

Her bright eyes, danced about, taking in everything around her, as her mind continued to run, as she sat still. Her thoughts were on her brother and his wife. Her best friend.

Her little niece and nephew crossed her mind as well. Where were they? Were they safe? She could only hope and pray.

After a little bit, Tigress perked her ears up, when she heard someone stirring. She looked over and saw Leon slowly sit up and rub his eyes. His fur was tussled badly, like he hadn't slept well.

He shook his head lightly, then ran one paw, between his ears, smoothing down his fur. He looked up at his sister, and forced a tired smile at her.

"You okay?" Tigress asked her little brother.

Leon shrugged. "I really don't know. I'm so worried about Shadow, I just don't know what to do." he muttered quietly.

Tigress nodded. She understood how her brother felt. He was scared for his family. They had no idea where they were, and that scared them all. They could only hope they were alright.

*Lee Mon Village. Home of the Shadow Ninja's*

After a while, the rest of the Shadow Ninja's, and the twin Tiger cubs, came out of their rooms. They all gathered around the table, and talked.

"So, how is your mom?" Sola asked sweetly.

"She seems to be okay." Silver said.

"Yeah, we're still worried about her, though." Blaze added.

"Yeah, we could understand that." Fin said, smiling at the cubs.

They looked up at him and grinned. Then they both grabbed their stomachs, as they both started to growl. The cubs blushed slightly, and giggled.

"It sounds like two little cubs are hungry. Am I right?" Tanani asked. They both nodded. "well, how about we go grab something to eat?"

Both cubs jumped up and down happily. "Yes, yes!" they both cried.

Then Fin motioned for them to follow him, and the two cubs ran over and grabbed a hold of his long, fluffy tail. The black Wolf looked back in surprise, to see the twins, grinning from ear to ear.

Fin chuckled softly, and let them hang on, as he led them down the halls, to the kitchen, followed by the twin Cheetah's, Sol and Sola, the black Jaguar, who's shoulder was bandaged quite well, Strak, and the Lynx, Wen. Tanani and Azure stayed behind to talk some more.

After a little while, Tanani left to check on Shadow, and Azure stayed at the table, thinking about things. After a few moments, her ears swiveled to the side, as a door swung open.

She thought it was Tanani, but when she turned around, she saw it was Chris. He stumbled out of his room, totally wiped out. Azure could tell he was tired, but she wanted to ask him something.

"Hey Chris!" she called out.

He looked up at her, and nodded. "Yeah?" he asked.

"I want to ask you something."  
"And that being?"  
"I want to know what you did to Shadow, and about your dad." Azure said, as she stood up from her chair.

Chris looked up at her, wide eyed and suddenly, completely awake. He had a look of nervousness on his face and in his eyes.

"Uh, w-well..." Chris stuttered nervously.

Then without a seconds warning, he dropped to all fours and sped out the door, leaving a stunned Azure behind.

"Chris, wait!" Azure yelled, as she took off running after him.

Chris sprinted quickly through the woods. Years in the army, had taught him how to maintain a steady pace, without stopping from tiring out.

He didn't want to get into the conversation of what he did, or his father, so his best bet, was to run. Friend or not, he didn't want to go there with anyone.

Thankfully for Azure, and unfortunately for Chris, Azure was a Cheetah, and Cheetah's were very quick and light on their feet.

Azure soon had the black Panther in her sights, as she continued to push onward. Thankfully, Shawna had put her leg into a special cast, that aloud her to run, even though it was hurt.

Azure saw Chris jump up into the trees, then jump from branch to branch as he ran. She pressed on, knowing a few tricks about catching people.

Solider boy may have gotten a head start, but she knew what she was doing. She watched as he dropped down from the trees again, and that's when she made her move.

She leapt up into the trees, like he had, and got ahead of him, and made a swift landing right in front of the fleeing Panther, causing him to stop in his tracks.

"Leave me alone, Azure!" Chris growled.

"No, not until I have some answers. You should at least tell me what you did to Shadow!" Azure replied.

Chris balled up his fists, and took a swing at her, which Azure barely dodged. Azure could see Chris was angry, meaning he was fighting out of anger, which meant she might could catch him off guard easier.

She continued to dodge his punch's, while she carefully made an ice wall behind him, then when he finally landed a hit on her, sending her to the ground, he turned to make a run for it, but instead, ran into the ice wall.

Azure got to her feet, and grabbed Chris' ankles, with a hard blast of water, coming out of the ground. Chris tried to hit her again, but she put up a wind shield, which instead, hurt Chris' paw.

Then Azure would throw small rocks and pebbles towards him, which he surprisingly deflected. Years of army training always came in use, at some point or another.

"Why do you want to know so badly?!" Chris demanded.

"Because we're your friends! We deserve to know!" Azure replied, angrily.

Chris wasn't one to give in easily, but he was wearing down again, and he knew what he might do, if he acted out of pure anger. And that _never_ needed to happen again.

"Alright... I'll tell you." he muttered in defeat.

Azure let his ankles lose, but kept the ice wall up. "First things first. What did you do to Shadow?" she asked.

Chris stared at the ground and muttered, "I used a special lightening shock. I-I have powers, like you do, but mine aren't strong, and I will _not_ use them, unless it's totally and completely necessary."

Azure nodded, still slightly confused, but was content with the answer.

"Alright, what about your father?" she asked, suspiciously.

Chris rolled his eyes and sighed deeply. "Swear you won't tell?" he asked.

"Only if you agree to tell Shadow as well." Azure said.

Chris thought for a moment, then agreed.

"My father was a very famous street fighter." Chris said, after a moment of silence.

Azure cocked her head to the side. "What's so bad about that?" she asked.

"Well... it's just not something I like getting around. Few people know that he was my father, and I plan on keeping it like that, understand?" he asked, eyeing her.

"Of course I understand, Chris! We're friends. I understand you don't want to talk much about this and you don't want it getting around. But you have to hold up your end of the deal, too." Azure said.

Chris sighed and nodded. "I know. Come on, we better get back and see how Shad is, speaking of her."

Azure nodded and let down the ice wall. Then the two turned and hurried back to the Shadow Ninja's home.

Both hoping that Shadow was alright, and wondering what she would think about what Chris had told Azure, and how she would take Chris having powers...

**Alright! Got that done! And it seems that Chris has some past things, he doesn't want getting out. Some of which, I believe are in or going to be in, SiberianTiger45's story on Chris' past. TOTALLY suggest checking it out, as well as ALL his stories! So yeah, hope you enjoyed it and please don't forget to leave a review! Later all!**


	30. Fights and plots!

**Okay, I am VERY sorry for taking so long, just had a TON of stuff to do, a lot of pain, lot of hurt feelings, (I HATE BULLIES!), lot of, well... EVERYTHING! But yeah, here's another chapter, enjoy it everyone!**

**Oh and before we start this chapter, I'd like to just like to say something.**

**I'm sure you all know about the Connecticut Elementary School Shooting. Well, I'm just asking for everyone to pray and remember those families, who lost ones they love. There were many hero's during this, some who gave their lives.  
****Like the teacher who hid her class, then when the shooter came, she lied about where they were, then he killed her and left. She saved her whole class from him.  
****Then the little six year old boy, who after the shooter shot up his class room, got the rest of the children, that were alive, out of the class room, and waited until the very last child was out, before he left as well.  
****These are real hero's, and we should honor and remember them, as well as the families who lost loved ones.**

**Alright, now that I said that, we can get on with the chapter! But seriously everyone, these people lost family, and they deserve our thoughts and prayers right now, in their time of sorrow.**

_Chapter thirty five: Fights and plots!_

*Deep in the Bamboo forest*

Everyone had slowly woken up and they all had a filling breakfast, then quickly continued on their way. They weren't sure how they would find Shadow, Chris Azure or the cubs, but they wouldn't stop looking.

Tigress could see how stressed and worried Leon was. She just hoped it didn't push him so far, that he got into one of his bad moods.

Not many people have seen Leon in a bad mood, and those who had, sometimes wish they hadn't. Leon in a mood, was a scary thing. And Tigress knew she had to keep a close eye on her little brother.

Shakira and her cubs stuck towards the back of the ground, talking among themselves. They were all hurt deeply from Tanis' betrayal.

But they knew they had to stay strong with each other, or they would crumble down to nothing. As if they were just dust, blowing in the wind.

The Jade Palace Masters knew how hurt the Lion family must be and felt badly for them. They would make sure, that the family had a good chance at teaching Tanis a lesson, if they ran into him again.

They promised, that they would have their chance to give him a piece of their minds, and they meant to keep it.

*Lee Mon Village*

Azure and Chris soon made their way back to the Shadow Ninja's village, which they found out was named, Lee Mon Village. They soon made it back to the Shadow Ninja's house and headed inside.

They saw the group of ninja's, sitting at the table, with Shadow's twin cubs, enjoying a nice breakfast. They looked up and the cubs grinned, when they saw their friends.

"There you are!" Blaze exclaimed.

"Yeah, where ya been?" Silver asked.

"Ohh... Azure and I were just enjoying the early morning, having a little talk is all." Chris said, glancing at Azure, who simply smirked and rolled her eyes in response.

"Well, we're glad you're back, we were starting to get worried about you two." Fin said.

"Yeah, just needed to get some fresh air, and talk some," Azure said. Then she looked towards Shadow's room. "how is she?" she asked.

"Still sleeping." Tanani said.

Then the cubs jumped out of their seats and grabbed a tray of food off the table. They took it and headed for their mothers room.

"Where are you two going?" Sola asked.

"We want mama to have something to eat, if she's hungry when she wakes up." Silver explained.

"Yeah, and we don't want uncle Chris eating it all!" Blaze added, with a snicker.

Then the two cubs, smirking and giggling, disappeared into their mothers room. Chris shook his head and sat down at the table with Azure.

They both quietly ate their meal, then went to check on Shadow. When they walked in, the White tigress was sitting up in bed, singing to her two cubs, who were sitting on her lap.

When she finished her song, she looked up at her friends, with a smile on her face, but with tired eyes. Chris and Azure could see that her sickness was still rapidly taking it's toll on her. Shadow looked at them, and could tell, that the two wanted to talk with her, alone.

"Ad'ika's, why don't you go out and play with the Shadow Ninja's. See if they'll show you their secret move." Shadow said, as she lifted up her twin balls of fluff, and set them down on the floor.

"Okay mama!" they both said, excitedly.

Then they ran out the door. Azure closed it, then sat down in the chair, while Chris remained standing.

"Alright, first off, what have I missed?" Shadow asked.

Chris and Azure held back a laugh, and quickly explained what had happened during the night. Shadow frowned, as she recalled the horrid dream she had endured.

She shook her head lightly, trying to push it away. Then she asked how they had stopped it. Azure looked at Chris, who nervously looked at the ground.

"Well... simply put, I used my lightening powers, and uhh, gave you a bit of a jolt." Chris said, as he drew circles on the ground, with his foot.

Shadow's eyes widened in surprise. "Well, I am grateful that you got it to stop. It was... to much." Shadow said quietly.

Chris was quite surprised she took it so easily, but relived she did. Azure tried to ask Shadow what it had been about, but Shadow simply said no.

She didn't want to put those images into her young friends mind. Azure didn't like it that Shadow wasn't telling her, but the White tigress was set on that and stuck to it. She refused to tell.

Azure groaned and gave up, then she turned to Chris. The Panther sighed, he knew it was time to tell Shadow about his dad.

Chris slowly explained about his father, and who he was. Shadow listened, with an understanding look on her face. When Chris finished explaining, one question was left in Shadow's mind.

"Chris, I have to ask, why does it bother you, if people know your father was a street fighter?" she asked.

Chris just looked away. "I don't know, I just don't like it." he replied.

Then the Panther turned and headed for the door, and when he opened it, a black Jaguar suddenly stumbled through it, causing Chris to growl furiously.

Strak quickly found balance, and looked at Chris, shocked and amazed.

"I can't believe I didn't see it! Connor was _your _dad?!" he asked quickly.

Chris snarled. "You were _listening_?" he growled.

Strak saw that the Panther was enraged, and slowly backed away from him. Chris was past angry. He had only wanted to tell Azure and Shadow, not Strak. Especially not Strak!

Then the Panther tackled the Jaguar to the ground, throwing punch's and kicks, claws and teeth, growls and snarls. Chris was beyond furious, and Strak found that out the hard way.

Azure jumped from the chair, and Shadow hopped out of bed, they both ran out the door, and stared at the two black cats, rolling on the floor, fighting.

Pretty soon, the rest of the Shadow Ninja's ran out, as well as Shadow's cubs. They stared in shock, but none of them knew what to do about it.

Strak did his best to fight, with his bruised shoulder, but Chris was beyond mad now.

As he fought, Strak swore he saw Chris' eyes turning a golden color. And with almost every punch, the Jaguar thought he felt a sharp shock run through his body, causing him to yelp.

After a bit of fighting, Strak kicked Chris in the stomach, making him fly off, hitting the stone floor, hard. Chris stumbled to his feet, as well as Strak.

Then when they tried to charge at each other, Shadow and Azure grabbed hold of Chris, while Fin and Wen grabbed hold of Strak.

The two black cats were simply furious, and pulled against their friends tight grip, trying to get at each other again. Tanani walked up and stood between the two, staring at them both in shock.

"What has gotten _into_ you two?!" she screamed.

The two hung their heads, both a bit ashamed, but Chris was still mad. He looked at the Jaguar and snarled, earning him a return snarl, from Tanani. After things were explained, Tanani was left almost speechless.

"Chris, why would you attack, Strak?" the female Panther asked, still in a bit of shock.

"He was listening to a conversation, he should _not_ have been listening to!" Chris growled.

Of all the people to have found out that his father was a famous street fighter, it just had to be Strak.

"Look, you two settle down, right now!" Tanani snapped.

The two black cats glared daggers at each other, and stayed that way for a few minutes, until they both had enough.

"I'm going for a walk." Strak said angrily, as he pulled out of Fin and Wen's grip, and stalked out the door.

Tanani turned to Chris, and tried to keep her boiling temper under control. "Chris, I know you're angry, but fighting is not the way to do it. You may have been mad, but you must understand, fighting is not the way to make it right." she said.

Chris huffed a quiet, "Fine." before turning and heading for his room.

"I'm going to go find Strak." Tanani sighed, as she ran off after her boyfriend.

She soon caught up with him, and saw him clawing at the trees. He dug his claws deep into the tree bark, snarling and growling. He was furious.

Tanani walked up and gently laid a paw on his shoulder. He looked over at her, trying to hold back a snarl. Then he turned back to the tree and continued clawing.

"Strak, please calm down. You can't blame Chris for being mad. He made me promise not to tell, it's not something he wants getting out." she said, trying to calm the enraged Jaguar down.

He turned around to face her and saw how worried she was about him. "Well... he should learn to control his temper!" he growled.

"And this is...?" Tanani asked, motioning towards the tree, with it's deep claw marks.

Strak shook his head and sighed. Tanani knew he was still a bit jealous of the attention she had been giving Chris. She smiled, as she wrapped her arms around him and looked up into his eyes.

Strak could feel his bad mood softening, as he started into her beautiful silver eyes. Then she brought her lips to his, and kissed him.

Strak widened his eyes in shock, as she broke away and laid her head on his chest and sighed.

"You know I'll always love you. You're the only one for me. Besides, Chris is family, it's different. But you'll always be the best man in my life!" Tanani said, as she rubbed her head under Strak's chin, purring softly.

Strak closed his eyes and smiled, as he hugged her close and purred quietly. The two cats stood in each others embrace, for what seemed like an eternity, before Strak kissed her forehead, and cupped her chin in one paw, and gently lifted her face, until his eyes met hers.

"I love you Tanani. I always have, and I always will. And I always want you to be in my life." Strak said.

Tanani smiled and hugged Strak. "Great minds, think alike." she said, causing Strak to laugh.

They both knew that they belonged together, and that they would always be together, for the rest of their lives and beyond.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle. Tanis' new hideout*

Tanis and Sinat sat watching their younger brother, wondering when Tanis' nerve attack would wear off. Sinat growled impatently, while Tanis simply sat there, staring. His golden red eyes, barely even blinking.

He was plotting; plotting and planning. He could feel renewed anger and hatred, boiling up inside him.

Hate for his nemesis'. Hate for the two young tigress cubs, that escaped his grasp, one fateful night. Hate for his once loyal apprentice, who found his mate, and turned against him. Hate for their offspring, who inherited their powers; powers that could be used to stop him. Hate for the Jade Palace Master's, and all the citizens, of the Valley of Peace. Hate for _anyone_, who had anything to do with that pathetic White tigress. Even his own sister.

One day, he would have his revenge. They would all pay, for everything they have done; for ruining his life; taking his family from him; stopping him at every turn; _everything_.

They would all pay an extremely high price. A sly and evil smile appeared on the malicious Lion's lips, as one last thought crossed his ever twisted mind.

_Shadow will die by my claws..._

**Alright, how was THAT for an ending? Eh, what can I say, I've been pretty mad about some bully problems lately, so yeah. Had to get it out somehow! So yes, hope you enjoyed it all. And please don't forget to leave your reviews people. I live off those, they keep me writing! But until the next chapter, later!**


	31. A Treaty of Three

**Okay, so since I haven't updated for this story in a while, might as well get that going! I'm sorry for taking so long. I hope you all like it, I've been super short for idea's... enjoy!**

_Chapter thirty one: A Treaty of Three_

Chris walked into his room and slammed the door closed behind him. He was still upset that Strak had listened in on his conversation with Shadow and Azure.

He walked over to one of the beams holding the wall in place and gave it a hard punch. He felt it shudder, then he growled and sat down on his bed, before he brought the roof down on his head.

He sighed quietly and stared at his paws. He was mad, no he was _furious_. He was ready to shred Strak into a million pieces, but kept his head on, because Tanani was family after all, and Strak was her boyfriend.

After a minute, there was a light knock on his door and Chris quietly muttered, "Come in."

Azure popped her head in and looked at the fuming Panther curiously. "You okay?" she asked quietly.

Chris huffed and rolled his eyes. "Sure I am! What ever could be wrong?" he asked sarcastically.

Azure sat down beside him and stared at him. "I mean it Chris. Are you okay?" she asked again.

Chris shook his head, then sighed quietly. "I can't believe that idiot was listening! That was a private conversation. Not one that was open to the world!" he growled.

Azure nodded. "I know. But you _were _kinda pushing your luck, hitting on Tanani, after all." she said.

Chris rolled his eyes. That had not been one of his best moments, he'd admit that much. But he didn't feel it gave Strak a reason to listen in on his conversation.

"Give him credit Chris. He had a good reason for spying on you. You were hitting on his girlfriend for pete's sake!" Azure exclaimed, taunting Chris a bit.

The Panther growled quietly and rolled his eyes a again. "Fine. I won't kill him when he get's back, I'll just... wait a little, happy?" he asked.

Azure narrowed her eyes a little. "No; you won't kill him; end of subject." she said.

Chris smirked at her, and it was her turn to roll her eyes this time. Then she got to her feet and headed for the door. Stopping just to say, "Thanks Chris."

He cocked his head and asked, "What for?"  
"For being you!" Azure said with a grin, then she skipped out of the room.

Chris stared after her for a few minutes, thinking about what she said, then slowly smiled. It _was_ pretty good being him after all. No one was like him, after all!

Chris smirked at that thought, then got up and walked out, to see how Shadow was doing.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle. Tanis' hideout*

Sinat had left to get some rest, while Tanis remained in his seat, watching his younger brother, with curiousness on his face. It had been hours since he had taken him from the Jade Palace, and he knew the nerve attack could wear off at any point now.

While he sat there, he took that time, to merely day dream about how he could finish off Shadow.

Perhaps he would finish her off, with her own sickness! He could send her into a horrible, deathly episode of it.

Or maybe, he could kill her off with her family. Kill each member of her family, right in front of her, in the worst way he could think of, which... could get quite messy.

Or maybe he would just end her life swift and quick. He quickly shook his head at that thought. No, Shadow didn't deserve to die a quick, almost painless death. She deserved to _suffer _after what she had done.

With every passing moment, Tanis' rage grew and his furry made his fur stand up on end. His eyes glowed bright, with anger and hatred.

A malicious smile crossed his lips, as his eyes narrowed, in anticipation. Anticipation of the day, Shadow would die. The day, her powers, her families powers, and all of China would be _his_.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle*

Leon sighed quietly, as he walked along. His thoughts never seemed to stray far from his wife and cubs, at this point. All he _could_ think about was them and their safe being. He feared greatly, that something bad would happen, and he wouldn't be there to stop it from happening.

After a bit of walking, he looked back at Shakira and her cubs. Shakira had little Kira cradled in her arms, sleeping soundly, while poor Lance was doing the best he could, to keep his eyes open, as he walked along.

Leon felt bad and slowed his pace, until he was walking beside them. Shakira looked over at him and smiled. Leon returned her smile and stopped in front of Lance, who looked up tiredly.

"Hey, you've been walking for a long time. You want a ride?" Leon asked, offering Lance his back.

The cub quickly nodded and climbed up on Leon's back. He wrapped his arms around Leon's neck and rested his head on Leon's shoulder, falling fast asleep within moments.

"Man, I could see he was tired, but I didn't think he was _that_ tired!" Leon joked quietly, as not to wake the two sleeping cubs.

"Yes. I felt bad that I couldn't carry them both. Thank you Leon." Shakira said.

Leon could see she was just as tired, but kept going for the sake of her cubs. It was a mother thing, Shadow always was like that. A mother would protect her cubs at any cost.

"Of course Shakira! It's the least I can do. Lance kept my little Blaze safe, and Kira helped me as well during the fight with Tanis. And you, you kept Shadow safe too." he said quietly.

Shakira nodded, hanging her head a little. "I really, truly am sorry Leon. I swear, I never knew Tanis was really like this! H-he told me he just wanted to scare your family a little, for putting him in jail, n-not to take your powers and kill you off!" Shakira exclaimed, a bit emotional.

Leon gently placed a paw on her shoulder, reassuringly. "It's alright Shakira, I understand! It wasn't your fault. And you've already made up for it, plenty." he said.

She nodded silently, and Leon removed his paw and returned it to steady Lance on his back. He knew she was still upset about Tanis betraying him like he had, especially having cubs of his own. How someone could just forget about his wife and children, he didn't know.

Or better yet, he _wished_ that he didn't know.

*Deep in the bamboo jungle. Tanis' hideout*

After a long time of pleasurable day dreaming, Ajani's light stirring, pulled Tanis from them. He growled quietly, from being interrupted, just as he was about to strike Shadow down, but smiled, when he saw what had interrupted it.

"Well, hello there sleeping beauty." Tanis taunted, causing Sinat to saunter in.

"He's _finally_ coming around?" the Lion asked, coming to a halt beside Tanis.

"Yes. About time, at that." Tanis added.

They both smiled, as Ajani shifted again, and slowly forced his eyes open, then widened them in a sudden panic.

"Wh-what's going on?! Wh-why can't I feel m-my arms or legs?!" he screeched.

"Oh hush you big baby, you'll get feeling again soon." Tanis said.

Ajani looked over, to see his two older brothers standing there. He glared at them for a few minutes, trying to figure out what was going on.

"So... did we all get thrown in jail? Or did I get kidnapped for a family reunion?" Ajani asked, as he finally started getting feeling in his arms and legs again.

"Me? Get thrown in jail? Ha!" Tanis snorted, only earning him a laugh from Sinat.

"Last I checked, you just recently broke _out_ of jail, because frankly, I've never heard of anyone breaking _in_." Sinat said, with a hearty laugh.

Tanis narrowed his eyes, and a deep growl emitted from his throat. "I'd watch what you say, brother. You don't want to be on my bad side." Tanis snarled.

Sinat simply rolled his eyes. "Same goes for me." he retorted.

Tanis spun around, teeth bared and claws extended, ready to have at it, with his brother, when Ajani broke in.

"Hey, you know we're not supposed to fight! Mom said not too." he said.

"Yeah? Well last I checked, our dear mother was dead, and besides... I didn't like that rule anyways." Tanis said, with a smirk.

Ajani narrowed his eyes a bit, at the comment Tanis had made about their mother. He never liked it, when Tanis talked about her like that, he just never said much, for fearing Tanis' fangs.

"Look, I'm pretty sure it's safe to assume the 'family reunion' part, so why don't you both cool it, and tell me what I'm doing here." Ajani said, growling under his breath.

Tanis slowly leaned back into his chair and glared daggers at Sinat, who simply glared back. Finally, when their staring contest came to a draw, Tanis explained.

"I need your help getting revenge on that white Tiger I had in my prison." he said.

"And I get _what _out of this?" Ajani asked, Sinat nodding in agreement.

Tanis smiled at that, more then happy to give them an answer.

"The honor to conquer all of China, and then take your own piece of land, that is your's to rule as _you _please." Tanis said.

The two brothers smiled at that. And Tanis knew it was sealed.

'_Look out Shadow. I'm coming, with my fangs bared!'_ Tanis thought, with a wicked grin on his face.

Then the three Lions stood and formed a circle around each other, each placing their paw on the others.

And thus, the treaty was born and the plan set into motion...

**Okay, not the longest chapter, but I don't have much to go on at the moment! That's why it's taking me SO LONG to update this story, sorry all! If you guys/gals have idea's, just say, "I've got an idea!" in your review, (PLEASE REVIEW!) and then I'll PM you if you have an account, and see what you've got! So, everyone got that? Okay, good! Now then, like I said, please review people! They make me write faster, believe it or not. So yes, until then, I guess I'll just have to leave you hanging, with the thought of this newly born treaty, hehehe! So yes, later everyone!**


	32. Thoughts and Feelings

**Alright, this chapter is specially made for Tigress137! She asked if we could see more about the Five and Po and all their feelings about this whole thing, so I'm doing a WHOLE chapter about them! Don't worry, things will move along smoothly enough, but I'm enjoying taking my time and putting things where they need to be, so just bare with me, okay? Alrighty, before I get started, I just gotta say how AMAZINGLY AWESOME Tigress137's story is, it is amazing, and if you wanna read awesome, check out hers! So, now that I've talked a bit, on with the story!**

_Chapter Thirty Two: Thoughts and Feelings_

*Deep in the bamboo jungle*

Everyone trudged along. Each in a deep thought; thoughts about their missing friends, thoughts about what might be happening to their friends, thoughts on what will happen to them, and thoughts on where Tanis had gone off too.

Viper quietly slithered along.

Her thoughts rested mostly on Shadow. Shadow had become a very close friend of hers and she was very worried for her friend.

She knew how badly off she was at the moment, because of the horrid sickness that ran through her veins. She knew how weak she must be. And how scared she was too.

Viper sighed sadly. Shadow was such a close friend of hers, a sister even, she wouldn't know what to do if she lost her.

Next to her walking along, was Monkey.

Monkey was pretty worried about the twins. They were his 'students' so to speak.

Silver and Blaze loved pranking people, and they often came to him for lessons and advice. He had grown to care about the twin tiger cubs very much.

He remembered when they were little and they first found their love for pranking. They had ended up pouring a bucket of water on him, and he told them how good they were and they hadn't turned back since.

He chuckled quietly, remembering all the good times. Now, he only hoped there would be more good times to come with the cubs.

Riding up on the tan furred monkey's shoulder, was Mantis.

Mantis was worried about the Cairo family, but he was also worried about Chris some. Chris and himself seemed to get along quite well, probably because they both enjoyed annoying Shadow.

Chris and Mantis sometimes would meet up behind the Barracks to make plans on how to annoying Shadow, other then Chris ripping up her vests with his dagger.

Mantis smiled, then gave a slight worried frown. He only hoped that Chris stayed out of trouble and came home safe.

Next, walking along side the monkey and the praying mantis, was Crane.

His thoughts dwelled a bit on Azure. She had trained with him a little when she visited, and he had taking a liking to her, he was one of the first from the Five to welcome Azure into their family.

He had seen Azure grow in her powers over the past few days, and he was very impressed. She knew exactly how to move and flow, and she reminded him very much of himself, when he was younger, and he first found confidence.

He knew how much Azure had grown in self confidence so very quickly and he had wanted to tell her how impressed and proud he was of her for that, he just hoped he would still have the chance to.

Next in line, came everyone's favorite panda, the Dragon Warrior himself, Po Ping.

Po's thoughts were centered on everyone, really. He was very worried about Shadow, being how sick she was and she went and ran off without any help.

Then he was worried about little Silver and Blaze, they were just cubs and they went off on their own, without an adult to help protect them.

He worried about Azure, who was still fairly young herself. She may be a good bit older then the twin cubs, but she wasn't ready to face the world so quickly, without some help. He knew how capable she was, but she was still very young.

And he even worried about Chris too, even though Chris loved to annoy him some it seemed. Chris was still a friend, and he would always worry and try to help a friend.

Not just because he was the Dragon Warrior, but because he was himself. And he never would let a friend down, when they needed him.

Then, last but not at all least, came Master Tigress herself.

She was very worried and concerned for her family. Shadow was her best friend, her sister even. She couldn't bare to lose her again. She had lost her friend once. And she refused to lose her again.

And then there was little Silver and Blaze. Her sweet little nephew and niece. She cared for them so much, even though she rarely showed it, the cubs knew how much their aunt cared for them.

And she was also very, _very _worried about her brother. She cast a glance at him, from the corner of her eye, and could see how fearful and worried he was.

He was doing all he could to remain strong and fight with his fear, but with each passing moment, the fear in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

She didn't know how she could console him, without it making her seem weak, and as a warrior, she couldn't afford to be weak.

She let out a silent sigh, and stared straight ahead. She knew she had to show her brother that she was just as worried, but how?

After what seemed to be years, but was only hours, the group finally made camp for the night.

Tigress helped Monkey gather fire wood and when they both returned, she saw Leon helping Shakira tuck her two cubs into their beds.

Lance gently wrapped his arms around his sister and hugged her gently in his sleep. Kira smiled softly and the two settled down for the night.

Shakira soon joined them for the night, after eating a small meal. She said a quick goodnight, and added a soft 'thank you', then turned in for the night.

Leon sat silently by the fire for a while, listening to his friends talk among themselves. After a bit, he rose to his feet and walked to the edge of their camp, near the edge of a cliff.

He walked over and reached up and gripped one of the lower branch's and stared out over the rise of the cliff.

Tigress stared over at her brother, and after a bit, she quietly got up and walked over to her brother. She took a spot silently beside him and clasped her paws behind her back and stared out as well.

After a while of them both being silent, Tigress turned her head and stared straight at her brother. After a moment, Leon turned and met her gaze.

They stayed there for a moment, before turning back to the scene before them.

And deep down, Tigress knew that Leon knew how much she was worried, how much she cared.

And how much she knew, that they would find their family and bring them home safe and sound...

**Okay, kinda short and not much action, I know, I know. But hey, like I said, this is for my friend, Tigress137! So, I hope you all liked it, I had a lot of fun trying to think of everyone's thoughts and feelings. I'm not sure if I got everyone in character, because I have a splitting headache, but I hope you all liked it and I did it all good. So yeah, until next time, please review, I love those things people! And also, don't forget to check out Tigress137's story and her one-shot! They RULE! So yeah, later everyone!**


	33. Hurt Feelings and Growing Anger

**I'M BACK! Maybe... I'm just really stuck on this story, but I'm trying! It's just really hard at times, but we'll see how well this goes, haha! Well, I am sorry for taking so long, but I really truly am trying! So... enjoy it all!**

_Chapter thirty three: Hurt Feelings and Growing Anger_

*Shadow Ninja's hideout*

Chris slowly walked down the hall, heading for Shadow's room. He had finished his talk with Azure and had agreed not to kill Strak.

Well, at least _this_ visit.

He chuckled to himself, and quietly opened the door to Shadow's room, and saw her looking out the window, as her twin cubs slept on the end of the bed.

Silver was sprawled out on top of his sister, who was curled up into a tight ball, both of them sleeping soundly, hugging each others tails.

Shadow looked over at Chris and smiled. "Well, either you agreed not to kill Strak, or you cleaned yourself up." she said, with a laugh, but Chris heard the pain she was experiencing, in her voice.

"Yeah, Azure made me promise not to kill him. This visit at least." he said, smirking.

"I get the feeling she didn't agree to that part." Shadow said, as she pushed herself into a sitting position.

Chris pulled his dagger out and twirled it around his fingers. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Just don't forget." he said, as he sheathed his dagger and smirked at her, "I never miss."

*Tanis' hideout*

Tanis sat on his throne, resting his chin on one paw. He was deep in thought, and didn't even notice Sinat walk in, nor did he see Ajani.

The two looked at each other, and laughed quietly, at the look on his face.

"He always has looked funny when he was thinking, hasn't he?" Sinat comment.

Ajani nodded. "Yeah, I've always found it funny." he said.

"Well... find _THIS!_" Tanis snarled, as he suddenly threw a dagger at their feet, causing them to jump back fearfully.

He stood up from his throne and towered over them. "Now... get... _OUT!_" he screamed at them, causing both lions to turn tail and make a break for the door.

Tanis dropped back into his seat, once the doors had slammed behind them. He put his head in his paws, and sighed.

After a moment, he got up and retrieved his dagger from the stone floor and took his leave to his room.

He closed and locked the door behind him, and looked around his calm, seemingly peaceful room. But it was anything but peaceful.

Every time he set foot in this room, he was flooded with memories. Both good and bad.

His two children had been born in here, albeit, he wasn't here for young Kira's birth, being he had been taken to jail.

He had also seen the last of his wife here as well. The woman he had married turn against him in this room. Then his own children followed suit not long afterwards.

A furious frown appeared on his worn face, and he walked over and dug his claws into the curtains and pulled down, making huge gashes in the fabric.

He pulled away and backed up, until he sat down on his bed, and buried his face into his paws. In all truthfulness, he was hurting badly, but he would never admit it.

He wasn't just hurting. He was... sad. He was sad and alone. Something he'd not truly felt. And then a sudden foreign thought came to his mind.

_Is this what I've done to others? Is this what I did to Shadow? To... to my sister?_

He quickly shook his head free of the thought, reminding himself he had to stay strong, unmoving, cold hearted, uncaring.

But the thought still evaded his mind. And it refused to leave him alone too. It nagged at him, and would not leave his mind at all.

He snarled quietly, and slowly pulled his head out of his paws and stared out the window, as new thoughts came to his mind.

_You can't feel repentance! You can't feel mercy! They hurt _you_! They stole _your_ family, ruined _your_ life, you're merely repaying the 'favor'. Now, go and do as you should. Reclaim your honor._

He slowly smiled, and pulled his dagger out and sharpened his claws. Yes, he would reclaim his honor.

And would make sure that the world would quiver in fear, and the very mention of his name.

He would be king...

**YES! I got a new chapter up! WHOO! Yes, I know, rather short, but still, IT IS A CHAPTER! YES! Alright, this was a very interesting chapter, being all of this just came to my head as I was typing, quite literally! So, I hope you all liked it! I did work hard on it, even though I just threw it together. So, please don't forget to review, I REALLY want to know your thoughts on this, being how it is. So please, REVIEW! And I will see ya next time! Later all!**


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